UNCOLLECTED LETTERS OF 
ABRAHAM LINCOLN 



UNCOLLECTED LETTERS 

OF 

ABRAHAM LINCOLN 



NOW FIRST BROUGHT TOGETHER BY 

GILBERT A: TRACY 



WITH AN INTRODUCTION BY 
IDA M. TARBELL 




BOSTON AND NEW YORK 
HOUGHTON MIFFLIN COMPANY 

1917 



L457 



COPYRIGHT, I917, BY GILBERT A, TRACY 
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 

Published October iqij 






OCT 20l9i7 



THIS VOLUME OF LETTERS 

WRITTEN BY 

ABRAHAM LINCOLN 

IS DEDICATED TO 

FIVE NOBLE-HEARTED LINCOLN-ADMIRERS 

JESSE W. WEIK 

JUDD STEWART 

IDA M. TARBELL 

CHARLES W. MCLELLAN 

HUGH MCLELLAN 

IN GRATITUDE FOR VALUABLE ASSISTANCE 

RENDERED TO THE COMPILER 



Preface 

THE supreme object in collecting copies of 
these unpublished and uncollected letters of 
Abraham Lincoln is to make his published writings 
— speeches, letters, and state papers — as com- 
plete as possible, in the belief that they will 
represent the remarkable character and exalted 
greatness of the man better than any biography 
of him possibly can, and will form not only a 
memorial but a monument to his greatness and 
renown more enduring than granite or bronze. It 
has been a passion with the compiler of these 
letters, most intense and profound, to complete and 
consummate the work of collecting these valuable 
letters. Abraham Lincoln in the qualities of mind 
and heart is the most deeply beloved man the 
world has ever known; and he stands without a 
peer in the sphere of his sublime greatness, as an 
astute politician, sagacious diplomat, and match- 
less statesman. 

No time or expense has been spared in searching 
for these letters in private hands, historical so- 
cieties, autograph catalogues, newspaper files, and 
magazines; solicitation has been extended to 
many Lincoln collectors and private persons, and 



viii Preface 

none has turned a deaf ear to the appeal except 
Ex-Governor Richard Yates, who has refused to 
give copies of the six letters in his possession written 
by Mr. Lincoln to his honored father, the Civil War 
governor ; on the contrary, the compiler has re- 
ceived many courtesies and valuable assistance 
from many collectors and friends of the enterprise. 

This fascinating labor has not been without its 
compensation and personal enjoyment making it a 
holiday pastime, and augmenting the circle of my 
friends whom it is a pleasure and delight to know; 
and I here acknowledge my personal indebtedness 
to many private citizens; and especially to Miss 
Caroline M. Mcllvaine, the efficient secretary and 
librarian of the Chicago Historical Society; to Mr. 
Charles W. McLellan and his son, Hugh McLellan, 
famous Lincoln collectors ; to the noble-hearted bi- 
ographer of Lincoln, Jesse W. Weik, Esq. ; and not 
the least though the last, to the prince of Lincoln 
collectors, Mr. Judd Stewart, to whom I owe more 
than I am able to express in words of gratitude. 
To all these friends I extend my warmest appreci- 
ation and heartiest thanks. 

The compiler hopes that some enterprising pub- 
lisher, at no distant day, will deem it for his 
interest and that of the reading public to take the 
Gettysburg Edition of the Complete Works (by far 
the fullest and most complete), divest it of all 
pictorial embellishment and extraneous matter, — 



Preface 



IX 



eulogies, addresses, etc., — and give to future gen- 
erations an authorized, standard edition of Lin- 
coln's Complete Works^ with the latest addition of 
discovered letters, in handsome typography for all 
coming time. 

Gilbert A. Tracy 
Putnam, Conn., 
June, igiy 



Editor's Note 

THE editor of this volume has had little to do 
but arrange the letters in chronological order 
and supply the few footnotes that seemed desirable. 
No attempt has been made in the notes to corre- 
late the letters with the known facts of Lincoln's 
life or with the history of the times. The aim has 
been only to identify so far as possible the less 
well-known persons addressed or mentioned and 
to give some information as to the present owner- 
ship of the letters and, when they have been pre- 
viously published, the place of publication. Read- 
ers familiar with the ways of collectors know how 
constantly Lincoln autographs are changing hands 
and how impossible it would be to account for the 
whereabouts of a large number of these letters. 

F. H. A. 



Illustrations 



v^ 



Abraham Lincoln . . . Photogravure frontispiece 

From the painting by Douglas Volk, N.A. 

Facsimile of Letter of June 4, 1 841, to Colonel . 

W. H. Davidson 6 

Facsimile of Letter of November 26, 1858, to 
Dr. B. Clarke Lundy 96 

Facsimile of Letter of May i, i860, to C. M. 
Allen 146 

Facsimile of Note of May 28, 1862, recommend- 
ing Ward H. Lamon 208 



Introduction 

ALL that concerns Abraham Lincoln is dear and 
sacred; particularly is this so of his written 
words. Few men have been able to give to what 
they set down more clarity and more of personal 
flavor. Thus the thing that is dear to us because it 
is his delights us because of its quality. Moreover, 
nothing that he wrote is without importance. How- 
ever slight, it may serve as a link; whatever it is, 
it adds something to our knowledge of his way of 
thinking, of his way of dealing with men, of the 
kind of activities which engaged him. Even a single 
new piece is sure to attract the attention of the 
large group that study his life. A collection of new 
pieces such as Mr. Tracy presents in this volume is 
as valuable as it is unexpected. 

It is surprising that such a collection should be 
possible at this date. At least twice before it has 
been said and believed by publishers, "Here is 
all he wrote." Nicolay and Hay entitled their two 
volumes of letters and speeches, published in 1894, 
Complete Works. The editor of the Gettysburg 
Edition, published in 1906, claimed, and of course 
believed, that he was making a final edition of 
Lincoln's works. The Gettysburg Edition was 
a prelude to the one hundredth anniversary of 



xvi Introduction 

Lincoln's birth. In spite of all of the close and 
conscientious collecting that had been done, the 
anniversary brought from hiding letter after letter 
of which the best-informed students had known 
nothing. Fortunate, indeed, it is that there was a 
Lincoln-lover with leisure and inclination at once 
to take advantage of this new crop. 

Mr. Gilbert A. Tracy, who gives us this volume, 
was admirably fitted for such a work. A clerk in the 
War Department from 1863 to 1868, he had watched 
Mr. Lincoln many a day and many a night as he 
passed to and fro between the White House and the 
telegraph offices when news of battle was coming 
in. He had seen him about the streets of Wash- 
ington, had heard his second inaugural and his 
last speech. There had been born in him, as in so 
many of those days, an affection and a reverence 
which time has only enlarged and mellowed. Mr. 
Tracy left Washington to become a Connecticut 
farmer, but hard work never prevented his fol- 
lowing closely everything published concerning 
Lincoln. Old age gave him leisure. When he re- 
alized that the anniversary of 1909 was bringing 
out much that was new he promptly began to 
gather the pieces. They multiplied on his hands, 
and he finally decided that he would make it his 
business to bring together into a supplementary 
volume everything not to be found in one of the 
two so-called "complete works" of Lincoln. This 



Introduction xvii 

book is a contribution of love to the memory of 
the most beloved of Americans. 

One might naturally suppose that, coming at so 
late a date and after so much thorough work from 
those best placed to know what Lincoln had writ- 
ten, all Mr. Tracy could do would be to make a col- 
lection of fragments or of slight and temporary 
notes — pieces that earlier collectors regarded as 
having no other value than that of the autograph. 
This is wrong. There are many letters here of which 
any historian might be proud to say, "I first pub- 
lished that." There is no period or activity of Mr. 
Lincoln's life that they do not illuminate. They 
add to our knowledge of him as a man, a friend, a 
lawyer, a politician, and a statesman. They even 
add two names to the index of his correspondents 
and friends. 

There is a goodly number of legal letters, several 
of them emphasizing what we already know, that 
Lincoln habitually drove law and politics in the 
same yoke. He was a careful lawyer and a no less 
careful politician. He let no source of information 
escape him. He gathered and passed on political 
news and plans in the same letters in which he re- 
ported on cases to the various lawyers with whom 
he was associated in the various towns on the old 
Eighth Circuit. Of his cleverness, his fairness, and 
his continued zest in the political game these 
letters give ample illustration. 



xviii Introduction 

The collection is surprisingly rich in letters bear- 
ing on the important period from 1858 to 1861, the 
years in which he competed with Douglas for the 
senatorship and failed, and in which he became a 
candidate for the Presidency and succeeded. There 
are some interesting glimpses of his own private 
opinion of Douglas. "His tactics just now in part 
is," he writes a friend in July of 1858, "to make 
it appear that he is having a triumphal entry into 
and march through the country; but it is all as 
bombastic and hollow as Napoleon's letters sent 
back from his campaign in Russia." 

As fine a contribution as there is in the collection 
is Lincoln's discussion in the several letters to 
R. M. Corwine, of Cincinnati, of his (Lincoln's) 
chances of winning the nomination to the Presi- 
dency at Chicago. They were written in April and 
May before the convention. The candor of their 
introduction is delightful. "Remembering that 
when a not very great man begins to be mentioned 
for a very great position, his head is very likely 
to be a little turned, I concluded I am not the 
fittest person to answer the questions you ask." 
With this admission he proceeds in entire frank- 
ness to tell just what he thinks of the chances of the 
various candidates in Illinois, himself included. 

A delightful feature of the collection is the addi- 
tion it makes to our impression of Lincoln's way of 
life and his relations with his friends. There is so 



Introduction xix 

little in his writing about his marriage and his wife, 
for instance, that it interests one to read in one 
of these letters written in 1842 such a statement 
as this, "Nothing new here, except my marrying, 
which to me is matter of profound wonder"; and 
one gets a new if slight look at Mrs. Lincoln in read- 
ing, in a letter to John Marshall, who had sent him a 
book of fiction, "I am not much of a reader of this 
sort of literature, but my wife got hold of the vol- 
ume I took home, read it half through last night, 
and is greatly interested in it." Marshall had sent 
him fifty copies of his book, with a request that 
he see what he could do about placing them in the 
Springfield bookstore. Mr. Lincoln's immediate 
attention to his friend's request, his full report, 
and his closing assurance that his effort had been 
"rather a pleasure than a trouble," are quite in line 
with other evidences in the letters of his pleasure 
in serving people. He held an opportunity to do a 
favor as a privilege. He was continually considering 
how this or that would affect the feelings of others. 
This was true even in politics. There is an illus- 
tration of this in a letter referring to Judge Logan's 
candidacy for the Supreme Bench. He wanted to be 
sure Logan could succeed before they went too far 
ahead, "because it would hurt his feelings to be 
beaten more than it would almost any one else." 

The value that he set on friendship was very 
high. This comes out again and again in these let- 



XX Introduction 

ters and particularly well in the fresh contribution 
here made to the history of the contest for the 
nomination to Congress in 1845. Lincoln believed 
that because of a compact made with his rivals the 
nomination belonged to him. His friend Hardin 
was disposed to take it if he could get it. Lincoln 
was ready to fight for his own, but not to a point 
where friendship would be broken. He cautions his 
friends that "it will be just all we can do to keep 
out of a quarrel " ; nevertheless, *' let nothing be said 
against Plardin," he wrote; "nothing deserves to 
be said against him. Let the pith of the whole ar- 
gument be 'Turn about is fair play.' " 

There are a surprising number of letters of the 
very first class, both in matter and manner. The 
letters in the Trumbull series are in this class. One 
letter of 1861 marked "very confidential" gives 
his full mind about the coming Cabinet appoint- 
ments. A letter of 1857 to his friend Lemen com- 
pares the work of Elijah P. Lovejoy and Lemen's 
father and contains this comment, "Lovejoy's 
tragic death for freedom in every sense marked his 
sad ending as the most important single event that 
ever happened in the new world." There is a let- 
ter explaining the "house divided against itself" 
speech ; a letter to Alexander Stephens, of which 
Lincoln says at the end: "This is the longest letter 
I ever dictated or wrote. But this is to only you 
alone, not to the public." Another letter of value 



Introduction xxi 

is that to General Steele, Governor Phelps, et. al., 
where, under date of November i8, 1862, he form- 
ulates a plan for reconstruction, and presents it 
in a most conciliatory spirit. All of these may be 
counted as great contributions, important and in- 
teresting. 

As a matter of fact, if we had no other collection 
of Lincoln's letters than these which Mr. Tracy 
has brought together and is giving to the world, we 
should know Lincoln as a clear, sound thinker, 
a wonderful master of direct original expression, as 
a man of kindest feeling, a man of clever wit, of 
shrewd action, and in all things and perhaps above 
all things a believer in fair play. Mr. Tracy has 
crowned his lifelong devotion to Abraham Lincoln 
with a noble gift to the people of the country. 

Ida M. Tare ell 



UNCOLLECTED LETTERS OF 
ABRAHAM LINCOLN 

To Ira I. Fenn 

Springfield, Oct. 6, 1836 

Z)' Sir: By direction of Judge Lockwood, I send 
you this with its contents. 

Yours &c 

A Lincoln 
Ira I. Fenn Esq 

[On reverse side of sheet] 

Free A. Lincoln P.M. 
New Salem III. 

Ira I. Fenn Esq'' 

Columbia 
Putnam Co 
Ills. 



2 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

To Levi Davis 

Springfield April 19, 1837. 
Levi Davis, Esq., 

Friend Davis — The hearer of this. Dr. A. G. 
Henr}',^ visits you for the purpose of drawing a 
small amount of money to enable the Commission- 
ers to commence the erection of a State House. He, 
as you probably recollect, is one of the Building 
Commissioners. The Bond for the 350,000. re- 
quired by the act locating the Seat of Govcriimmty 
has been executed by several of our Citizens and 
duly approved by the Governor, and will be filed 
with the Treasurer by Dr. Henr}- on his Arrival at 
vour Town. The Dr. bein^ a Stranger to vou and 
the Treasurer, and his duties being of a new kind, 
he has asked me to request you as friends to render 
him what assistance you conveniently can. We 
have, generally in this Country', Peace. Health, and 
Plent}', and no News. Vet}* respectfully, 

A. Lincoln. 

To Levi Davis 

Springfield. March 15, 1S38. 
Levi Davis, Esq., 
J'andalia, III. 
Dear Sir: We received yours of the 2^^ inst., by 
due course of mail and have only to offer in excuse 
for not answering it sooner, that we have been in 

* An intimate friend of Lincoln at Springfield. 



To Dresser 3 

a great state of confusion here erti since the re- 
ceipt of your letter : and also, that your clients can- 
not su5er by the delay. The suit is merek insti- 
tuted to quiet a title \sidch has passed through 
Dr. Stapp, but to which he no^' lays no claim as we 
understand — he is a mere nominal pany* to the 
proceeding — more than all this, we belie\'e noth- 
ing ^iU or can be done with the case at this court. 
^^'e beg your pardon for our neglect in this business. 
if it had been important to you or your client v. e 
would have done better. Yours truh', 

Stu.\rt and Lixcolx. 

To Dresser ^ 

S??^y:-F:zLD Mar 3-, 1539. 
Mr. Dresser: 

Enclosed are the papers to commence a suit for 
old man Summers against H. Sears. You \\ill find 
one of Butler's blank summons filled up by me 
which you can copy and it vnW be right in this case. 
It would do itself but for its having the Sangamon 
seal to it. .Also on the other side of this sheet you 
v.ill find a petition for an order to have the land in- 
volved in this matter conveyed to Sears. It. to- 
gether ^^ith the bond (also enclosed) you \sill file 
and docket among your chancer}' cases. Xo process 
to issue in it. Yours 

A. Lescolk. 

1 Original OTn^ed by Mr. Jesse W. Weik. 



4 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 
To Mrs. Orville H. Browning ^ 

[Probable date: Oct. lo or ii, 1839.] 

To THE Honorable Mrs. Browning: 

We the undersigned, respectfully represent to 
your Honoressy that we are in great need of your 
society in the town of Springfield and therefore 
humbly pray that your Honoress will repair forth- 
with to the seat of Government bringing in your 
train all ladies in general who may be at your com- 
mand and all Mrs. Browning's sisters in particular 
[the above was written by A. L.] and as faithful 
and dutiful petitioners we promise that if you grant 
this our request, we will render unto your Honoress 
due attention and faithful obedience to your orders 
in general and to Miss Brownings in particular. 

In tender consideration whereof we pray your 
Honoress to grant your humble petitioners their 
above request and such other and further relief in 
the premises as to your Honoress may seem right 
and proper; and your petitioners as in duty bound 
will ever pray, etc. (A Lincoln 

(Signed) 



O. B. Webb 
J. J. Hardin ^ 
^ John Dawson ^ 



* Mr. Browning, aftervvards United States Senator, and Secre- 
tary of the Interior under Johnson, was at this time a member 
of the Illinois State Senate. 

* John J. Hardin, Member of Congress from Illinois, 1843-45; 
killed at the head of his regiment at Buena Vista, Feb. 27, 1847. 

' One of Lincoln's colleagues in the Legislature. 



To S 

To ' 

Springfield, Ills., Sept. 26th, 1840. 

Dear Sir: I duly reed, your letter with the enclos- 
ures dated the 6th inst. which I have had on hand 
ever since, waiting the return of C. Walker & have 
not seen him till this moment. You state that 
some years since M. D. Browning of Quincy, pur- 
chased a floating Claim & entered therewith cer- 
tain lands and took an assignment of the Certificate y 
from me to Jefferson Taliaferro my interest there- 
in & that an action of ejectment has commenced. 
Now, I have no recollection of the transaction, and 
if I did it I have forgotten it, nor do I presume it 
was done by me in person, but it may have been 
done by some person that claimed to be my friend 
in the matter, in that floating claim although in my 
name I have no interest. If you desire it and can 
make me safe I have no objection to make such 
arrangements as we can agree upon. As I am un- 
acquainted with the transaction I am unwilling to 
make any conveyance until I see the assignment & 
original certificate. If Mr. Underbill will bring that 
Certificate I will do all an honorable man should do. 
It is not money but safety I desire. I am too much 
pressed [ ?] professionally to go over but if Mr. Un- 
derbill will come on & bring the assigned Certificate , 
I will do all in safety I can or ought. 

Yours very sincerely A. Lincoln. 

^ In the Frank Logan Collection. 



6 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

To John T. Stuart ^ 

Springfield, Feb. 5, 1841. 

Dear Stuart: Some of us here have concluded that 
if it is agreeable, Bat Webb shall be our District 
Attorney. He would accept the place, but will not 
enter into a scramble for it. We here, or at least I, 
know of no other applicant. I will add that I really 
have my heart set upon Webb's appointment to 
this place, and that I believe the whole party would 
be gratified with it. 

WTiat the Locos will do about the Congressional 
election, no man can tell. I heard Herndon say on 
yesterday that he was in favor of taking Jersey, 
Green, Scott, Morgan, Cass, Menard, Sangamon, 
Logan and Tazewell from your District and add- 
ing them to Reynolds, and leaving all else in statu 
quo. Something like this I think more probable 
than the District system, because our opponents 
are somewhat afraid of the latter themselves. 
As ever, your friend, 

A. Lincoln 

To Colonel W. H. Davidson ^ 

Springfield, June 4, 1841. 

Dear Colonel: Yours of the 23rd ult. is duly re- 
ceived and I have most cheerfully complied with 

^ Lincoln's first law partner. 

2 Original owned by Mrs. Frank E. Hay, Carmi, 111. 




tc ^ 



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To Samuel D. Marshall 7 

the request you make in relation to Colonel Ser- 
vant. I have written to Mr. Tyler saying ail for the 
Colonel that I could say for the best man on earth. 
Baker ^ will do the same to-day. 

About the matter you and I spoke of at our last 
parting, I can say nothing which would be news to 
you. My feelings, and those of Baker, on that sub- 
ject, are precisely the same as when we last saw 
you ; but the question is how to effect anything. If 
you see any way that we can do anything you ought 
to write us : there is no indelicacy in it. 

Baker and I were with Webb at Vermillion and 
talked the matter over with him and he will tell you 
the particulars of what we thought. 

With my best respects to Mrs. Davidson and 
Mrs. Wilson, I remain, 

Your friend, as ever, 

A. Lincoln 



To Samuel D. Marshall ^ 

Springfield, July 14, 1842. 

Friend Sam : Yours of the 15 th June, relative to 
the suit of Grable vs. Margrave was duly received, 

^ Doubtless Edward Dickinson Baker, then a member of the 
Illinois Senate, afterwards United States Senator from Oregon. 
He fell at Ball's Bluff, where he commanded a brigade. 

* Of Shawneetown, III., son of John Marshall of the same place, 
who was one of the Territorial Judges of Illinois. Original owned 
by Misses Genevieve and Elizabeth Marshall, of Shawneetown. 



8 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

and I have delayed answering it till now, when I 
can announce the result of the case. The judgment 
is affirmed. So soon as the clerk has leisure to make 
out a copy of the mandate of the court, I will get 
him to do so, and send it to you, by force of which, 
your clerk will issue an execution. 

As to the fee, if you are agreed, let it be as follows. 
Give me credit for two years subscription to your 
paper and send me five dollars, in good money or 
the equivalent of it in our Illinois paper. 

There is nothing new here. Bennett's Mormon 
disclosures are making some little stir here, but not 
very great. 

Ever your friend 

A. Lincoln. 

To Samuel D. Marshall ^ 

Springfield, Nov. nth, 1842. 
Dear Sam : Yours of the loth Oct. enclosing five 
dollars was taken from the office in my absence by 
Judge Logan ^ who neglected to hand it to me till 
about a week ago, and just an hour before I took a 
wife. Your other of the 3rd Inst., is also received. 
The Forbes & Hill case, of which you speak has not 
been brought up as yet. 

^ Original owned by Misses Genevieve and Elizabeth Mar- 
shall. 

* Stephen T. Logan, Lincoln's law partner, 1841-43; formerly 
a Judge of the United States Circuit Court. 



To Richard S. Thomas 9 

I have looked into the Dorman & Lane case, till 
I believe I understand the facts of it; and I also 
believe we can reverse it. In the last I may be 
mistaken, but I think the case at least worth the 
experiment, and if Dorman will risk the cost, I will 
do my best for the " biggest kind of a fee " as you 
say, if we succeed, and nothing if we fail. I have 
not had a chance to consult Logan since I read your 
letters, but if the case comes up, I can have the use 
of him if I need him. 

I would advise you to procure the Record and 
send it up immediately. Attend to the making 
out of the Record yourself, or most likely, the clerk 
will not get it all together right. 

Nothing new here, except my marrying, which 
to me, is matter of profound wonder. 
Yours forever 

A. Lincoln. 

Samuel D. Marshall, Esq. 

Shaivneetown, 
Illinois. 

To Richard S. Thomas ^ 

Springfield, Ills., Feb. 14, 1843. 

Friend Richard : . . . Now if you should hear 
any one say that Lincoln don't want to go to Con- 
gress, I wish you as a personal friend of mine, 

* A lawyer of Virginia, III.; an old-line Whig until the organi- 
zation of the Republican Party. 



10 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

would tell him you have reason to believe he is 
mistaken. The truth is, I would like to go very 
much. Still, circumstances may happen which may 
prevent my being a candidate. 

If there are any who be my friends in such an en- 
terprise, what I now want is that they shall not 
throw me away just yet. 

Yours as ever, 

A. Lincoln. 



To Richard S. Thomas 

Springfield, March 2, 1843. 

Friend Richard : I received yours of the 27th ult., 
in due course, for which I thank you. The fact men- 
tioned by you that an impression was being made 
that I did not wish to be a candidate was precisely 
the reason of my writing you before. 

The Bill forming the Districts is now a law, and 
our District is composed of Putnam, Marshall, 
Woodford, Tazewell, Logan, Mason, Menard, Cass, 
Scott, Morgan and Sangamon. 

Last night the Whigs of the state, now here, held 
a meeting and recommended that a convention be 
held in each District on or before the first Monday 
of May, to nominate candidates for congress. By 
this recommendation your county will have two 
delegates in our convention. Why might you not 
be one of those Delegates? 



To Richard S. Thomas ii 

You will see the full length proceedings of the 
meeting in the Journal. The meeting was large, 
and every resolution passed unanimously; and I 
do hope the principles and recommendations put 
forth by them may be responded to with the same 
unanimity by our friends everywhere. 

If they shall be so responded to, we shall yet, 
and at no very distant day, be of the majority in 
the State. 

Write me again, if it is not too troublesome. 
Yours as ever, 

A. Lincoln. 

To Henry E. Dummer ^ 

Springfield, Jan. 2, 1844 

Friend Dummer : In reply to yours of the 14th 
ult. I say that if you can get a clean title to the 
40 acres of land, together with costs, and a reason- 
able fee to yourself, I reckon you had better do it. 
Have the deed made to me. 

Yours as ever, 

A. Lincoln. 

To Richard S. Thomas 

Springfield, February 14, 1844. 

Friend Richard : I am sorry to have to say I can 
find but one copy of the President's Message in 

* A lawyer of Beardstown, 111, 



12 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

town, and that one belongs to the State Library, 
and of course cannot be had. 

If alive and well I am sure to be with you on the 
22nd. I will meet the trio of mighty adversaries 
you mention, in the best manner I can. 
No news here. 

Yours forever. 

A. Lincoln 



To 



Springfield, April 24, 1844. 

As to the real estate, we can not attend to it as 
agents, and we therefore recommend that you give 
the charge of it, to Mr. Isaac S. Button, a trust- 
worthy man, and one whom the Lord made on pur- 
pose for such business. 

Yours &c 

Logan & Lincoln 

To Samuel D. Marshall ^ 

Springfield, Dec^ 6th, 1844. 

Dear Sam : In your last letter, you incline to com- 
plain, that in mine, I did not notice what you had 
said about the case of Stickney vs. Cassell, nor the 

' Original owned by Misses Genevieve and Elizabeth Mar- 
shall, Shawneetown, 111. 



To Samuel D. Marshall 13 

cases against the Shawneetown Bank. The truth is, 
when I received your letter, I glanced it over, stuck 
it away, postponed the consideration of the cases, 
above mentioned, and forgot them altogether. I 
now give you some account of all your cases, in de- 
tail. Dorman vs. Lane, stands as it did & I will do 
the best I can with it according to your instructions. 
Gatewood vs. Wood & Wood we would have failed 
entirely to get into court but for an agreement with 
Mr. Eddy, which saved us. By the agreement we 
altered the record so as to make it appear that it 
had been sent to the circuit court, also agreeing 
that at the next term of the Gallatin Circuit Court, 
all the papers & orders are to be altered there ac- 
cordingly nunc pro tunc. 

Stickney vs. Cassell, I have just examined, & I 
think I can get the judgement affirmed. I '11 try. 
The cases against the Bank, neither Logan nor I 
can engage in with you ; we being to some extent 
standing counsel for Dunlap, & also specially re- 
tained by him in these cases. Mr. Eddy has re- 
tained me in a case for your father, for the Supreme 
Court, which, however, I have not yet examined. 

Give my respects to your Father and believe me 
as ever 

Yours sincere friend 

A. Lincoln. 



14 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

To Samuel D. Marshall 

Springfield, June 20, 1845. 

Dear Sam : I have wondered very much why you 
never wrote me concerning the Dorman & Lane 
case since I wrote you, as to the decision of it in the 
supreme court. I learn this morning at the clerk's 
office, that Lane has not, as yet, taken out the 
order remanding it ; and I think it possible, he may 
have abandoned it. You, perhaps, know his inten- 
tion. The case of Gatewood vs. Wood & Wood — 
has that been settled? or how stands it? ^ "^ 

At the request of Mr. Eddy, I attended a case in 
the Supreme Court of Rawlings against Field, your 
father, Mr. Eddy & some others, and got the judg- 
ment reversed. This was no business of yours, 
and I now only ask, as a favor of you, that if Mr. 
Eddy is well, you say to him I would like to have 
the little fee in the case, if convenient. 

Please write me on the receipt of this. 
Yours forever 

A. Lincoln. 

Mr. Samuel Marshall 

I To Henry E. Dummer ^ 

Springfield, Nov. i8th, 1845. 

Friend Dummer : Before Baker left, he said to 
me, in accordance with what had long been an 

* By courtesy of William F. Dummer, Chicago Historical Society. 



To Henry E. Dummer 15 

understanding between him and me, that the track 
for the next congressional race was clear to me so 
far as he was concerned; and that he would say- 
so publicly in any manner and at any time I might 
desire. I said in reply, as to the manner and time 
I would consider a while and write him. 

I understand friend Delahay ^ to have already 
informed you of the substance of the above. 

I now wish to say to you that if it be consistent 
with your feelings, you would set a few stakes for 
me. I do not certainly know, but I strongly suspect 
that General Hardin wishes to run again. I know 
of no argument to give me a preference over him, 
unless it be "Turn about is fair play." j 

The Pekin paper has lately nominated or sug- 
gested Hardin's name for Governor, and the Alton 
paper, noticing that, indirectly nominates him for 
Congress. I wish you would, if you can, see that, 
while these things are handed about among the 
papers, the Beardstown paper takes no stand that 
may injure my chance unless the conductor really 
prefers Genl. Hardin, in which case I suppose it 
would be fair. 

Let this be confidential and please write me in a 
few days. 

Yours as ever, 

A. Lincoln. / 

^ Probably Mark W. Delahay, a Whig politician, later of 
Kansas. See letters on pp. 99, 103, 116, 117, 134, 141, and 176. 



i6 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

To B. F. James ^ 

Springfield, Ills., Dec 6, 1845. 

B. F. James Esq. 

Dear Sir: To succeed, I must have 17 yotes in 
convention. To secure them, I think I may safely 
claim Sangamon 8, Menard 2, Logan i, making 11, 
so that if you and other friends can secure Dr. 
Boal's 2 entire senatorial district, that is, Tazewell 4, 
Woodford i, and Marshall i, it just covers the 
case. ... 

Upon the whole, it is my intention to give him 
the trial, unless clouds should rise, which are not 
yet discernible. This determination you need not, 
however, as yet, announce in your paper, at least 
not as coming from me. . . . 
\^ In doing this, let nothing be said against Hardin 
. .\ nothing deserves to be said against him. Let 
the pith of the whole argument be "Turn about 
is fair play." 

Yours very truly, 

A. Lincoln. J 
P.S. . . . 

A.L. 

^ See five other letters to James written during this campaign, 
in Works, Nicolay and Hay, 1894, i, 82-85, and same, Tandy's 
ed., 1905, I, 278, 282, 285, 286. 

2 Robert Boal. See letter of Jan. 7, 1846, to him in Works^ 
Nicolay and Hay, Tandy's ed., 1905, i, 280. 



To McNamar 17 

To Samuel D. Marshall 

Springfield, Dec' 30, 1845. 

Friend Sam : I learned today that Lane, to avoid 
paying the cost of taking the case between Dorman 
and him back from the Supreme Court, has com- 
menced a new proceeding in your Circuit Court. 
Write me, if this is so; and I, together with Judge 
Logan, will try to frame a plea either in bar or in 
abatement, out of the fact of the pendency of the 
old case, that shall blow them up with their new 
case. 

By the way, if they fail for more than [a] year 
(which they have nearly done already) to take the 
old case down from here, I think we can plead 
limitation on them, so that it will stick for good 
and all. Don't speak of this, lest they hear it, and 
take the alarm. 

Write me on receipt of this. 

Yours as ever, 

A Lincoln. 

To McNamar ^ 

[1845] 
Friend McNamar : You see the object of the 
above letter as it speaks of the tax of 1842. I had 

^ John McNamar, or John McNeill, as he called himself in 
New Salem, was the man who had been engaged to Anne Rut- 



i8 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

supposed the land was already sold, but so far as 
the Returns in the Auditor's Office shows, it has 
not. It may be that James meant the year 1843. 
I wish you would examine, and if the taxes have 
been paid up to this year, apply the inclosed money, 
or enough of it, to the payment of the tax of this 
year and send me the receipt by mail. 

Write the condition in which it stands at any 
rate. 

Yours as ever, 

A. Lincoln. 



To B. F. James ^ 

Springfield, Feb. 9, 1846 

Dear James : You have seen, or will see what 
I am inclined to think you will regard as rather an 
extraordinary communication in the Morgan Jour- 
nal. The "excessive modesty" of its tone is cer- 
tainly admirable. As an excuse for getting before 
the public, the writer sets out with a pretence of 
answering an article which I believe appeared in 

ledge before Lincoln's engagement with her and whose apparent 
faithlessness brought about her fatal illness. This letter may- 
refer to property abandoned by him when he left New Salem in 
1834. According to Mr. Henry C. Whitney, Lincoln procured 
James McNamar (apparently brother of John) to correct the 
English of his first political address, in 1832. 

^ At Tremont, 111. From Proceedings oj the Massachusetts 
Historical Society, xlii, 83. (Jan., 1909.) The original is in the 
Washburn collection in the manuscripts of the Society. 



To B. F. James 19 

the Lacon paper some time since taking the ground 
that the Pekin convention had settled the rotation 
principle. Now whether the Pekin convention did 
or did not settle that principle, I care not. If I 
am not, in what I have done, and am able to do, for 
the party, near enough the equal of Gen' Hardin, 
to entitle me to the nomination, now that he has 
one, I scorn it on any and all other grounds. 

So far, then, as this Morgan Journal communica- 
tion may relate to the Pekin convention, I prefer that 
your paper shall let it "stink and die" unnoticed. 

There is, however, as you will see, another thing 
in the communication which is an attempt to in- 
jure me because of my declining to recommend 
the adoption of a 7ieiv plan, for the selecting a can- 
didate. The attempt is to make it appear that I 
am unwilling to have a fair expression of the whigs 
of the District upon our respective claims. Now 
nothing can be more false in fact; and if Gen'l 
Hardin had chosen to furnish his friend with my 
written reason for declining that part of his plan ; 
and that friend had chosen to publish that reason, 
instead of his own construction of the act, the false- 
hood of his insinuation would have been most 
apparent. That written reason was as follows, to 
wit: 

"As to your proposals that a poll shall be 
opened in every precinct, and that the whole shall 
take place on the same day, I do not personally 



20 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

object. They seem to me to not be unfair; and I 
forbear to join in proposing them, only because I 
rather choose to leave the decision in each county, 
to the whigs of the county, to be made as their own 
judgment and convenience may dictate." 

I send you this as a weapon with which to de- 
molish, what I cannot but regard as a mean insinu- 
ation against me. You may use it as you please ; I 
prefer however that you should show it to some of 
our friends, and not publish it, unless in your judge- 
ment it becomes rather urgently necessary. The 
reason I want to keep all points of controversy out 
of the papers, so far as possible, is, that it will be 
just all we can do to keep out of a quarrel — and I 
am resolved to do my part to keep peace. 

Yours truly 

A. Lincoln 



To Samuel D. Marshall 

Springfield, March 3, 1846. 

Dear Sam: I herewith send you the draft of a 
plea for our case. By consultation with Judge 
Logan, I draw it in the form I do, to compel Lane, 
in order to get round it, to reply that the case has 
been brought to, and reversed & remanded by the 
Supreme Court, upon his doing which, you join 
issue with him, and that will compel him to pay 
the cost in the Supreme Court in order to get the 



To Samuel D. Marshall 21 

Record to prove his replication with. If I were to 
set out the whole facts in a plea in abatement, 
we should have to pay the Supreme Court cost, in 
order to get the record to prove the plea with. This 
we wish to avoid. This that I send, is a plea in 
bar. You will, of course, put in all, and all man- 
ner, of other pleas in bar, particularly as to lapse 
of time. 

Yours, as ever — A Lincoln. 
Dorman & Wife ' 

vs Petition to sell real estate — 

Lane, Adm"" &c 

And the said defendants come 
and defend, when, where &c. and say, that the 
said Petitioner to have and maintain his petition, 
or to have the prayer thereof granted by said court, 
ought not, because they say, that heretofore to wit, 
on the day of a.d. the said peti- 

tioner filed his petition in this court, against these 
defendants, praying an order for the sale of the 
identical same land, for the purpose of paying the 
identical same debt, as in the petition herein; 
and that such proceedings were had on that peti- 
tion, that at the term of said court, the 
final order was made by said court, directing the 
sale of said land, for the object in that petition 
stated; and this the said defendants are ready 
to verify ; wherefore they pray judgment &c. 

Marshall p.d. 



22 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

To Orville H. Browning 

Springfield, June 24th, 1847. 

Dear Browning: — Yours of the 19th inst. is re- 
ceived, and I have filed a plea for you in the case 
of Moore vs. Latourette. 

Don't fret yourself about the trouble you give 
me; when I get tired I'll tell you. 

I am glad you sent this letter, because it re- 
minds me to write the result of your two cases of 
Moore vs. Brown & God knows who all, the charge 
of which you sent to Logan, and into which he 
drew me with him. 

We tried one of them, in which, after the plain- 
tiff proved title, we offered the Auditor's deed, as 
the first link of connected title and seven years 
possession, which was objected to, and the judges 
divided in opinion, which division is certified for 
the Supreme Court. The other case stands over to 
abide &c. 

Indeed, indeed, I do not know what they are do- 
ing in the Convention. It is considered as almost 
settled that they will not prohibit Banks, that they 
will establish a poll tax, will restrict the number of 
members of both Houses of the Legislature to 100; 
will limit their per diem to ^2.00 or $2.50 and make 
it still less after the first forty days of the session. 
So far as I have mentioned, I am pleased. Some 
other things I have fears for. I am not easy about 



To Orville H. Browning 23 

the Courts. I am satisfied with them as they are, 
but shall not care much if the judges are made 
elective by the People, and their term of office 
limited. I fear, however, something more, and, as 
I think, much worse than all this, to wit "A Puppy 
Court," that is a Judge in each county, with civil 
jurisdiction in all cases up to a thousand dollars, 
and criminal in all cases not capital. "A Migratory 
Supreme Court" and salaries so low as to exclude 
all respectable talent. From these — may God 
preserve us. 

As to what I, Baker, and everybody else are 
doing, I am preparing to go to the Chicago River 
& Harbor Convention. Baker has gone to Alton, 
and is thought to be Colonel of the South Regiment, 
and everybody is doing pretty much what every- 
body is always doing. 

I hope this may find you well, and Mrs. Brown- 
ing recovered from her hurt. I don't believe Mary 
and I can visit Quincy, although it would be very 
pleasant to do so. 

My Chicago trip and "several other gentlemen" 
(Bob & Ed) are very much in the way of it. Our 
love to Mrs. Browning and yourself. 

A. Lincoln. 



24 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 
To Converse & Priest 

October ist. 1847. 
Messrs. Converse i^ Priest : If you will let Mr. 
E. G. Johns have any amount of oil not exceeding 
ten dollars in value, I will pay you the money for it 
in three months from date. 

A. Lincoln 

To Morris & Brown 

Springfield, Oct. 19, 1847. 

Friends Morris and Brown. Your letter of the 
15 th was received this morning. The Governor 
is not here, and will not be, it is thought, for about 
ten days. Unfortunately for my attending to the 
business you sent, I start for Washington by way 
of Kentucky, on next Monday. 

I will try, however, to have the only objection 
that can be made presented to the Governor. I 
suppose it is the true construction of the act of 
Congress for the Governor, on whom the requisi- 
tion is made, to look to the sufficiency of the affi- 
davit; otherwise the provision of the act, that a 
copy of the enactment or affidavit shall accom- 
pany the requisition is mere foolishness. What 
view, however, our Governor will take no man can 
tell. 

If he shall make the order surrendering the de- 



To Morris & Brown 25 

fendants, you will have then to do the best you 
can by a Habeas Corpus. 

Yours in haste, 

A. Lincoln. 



To Morris & Brown 

Springfield, October 21, 1847. 
Messrs. Morris and Brown. 

Gentlemen : — Your second letter on the matter of 
Thornton and others, came to hand this morning. 
I went at once to see Logan, and found that he is 
not engaged against you, and that he has so sent 
you word by Mr. Butterfield, as he says. He says 
that some time ago, a young man (whom he knows 
not) came to him, with a copy of the affidavit, to en- 
gage him to aid in getting the Governor to grant 
the warrant ; and that he, Logan, told the man that, 
in his opinion, the affidavit was clearly insufficient, 
upon which the young man left, without making 
any engagement with him. If the Governor shall 
arrive before I leave, Logan and I will both attend 
to the matter, and he will attend to it if he does not 
come till after I leave ; all upon the condition that 
the Governor shall not have acted upon the matter 
before his arrival here. I mention this condition, 
because I learned this morning from the Secre- 
tary of State that he is forwarding to the Gover- 
nor, at Palestine, all papers he receives in the case, 



26 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

as fast as he receives them. Among the papers 
forwarded will be your letter to the Governor or 
Secretary of, I believe, the same date and about the 
same contents of your last letter to me ; so that the 
Governor will, at all events have your points and 
authorities. The case is a clear one on our side; 
but whether the Governor will view it so is an- 
other thing. 

Yours as ever, 

A. Lincoln. 



To Richard S. Thomas 

Washington, January i, 1848. 

Dear Richard: Your letter of the 23rd Dec. is 
received, as also the petition you mentioned. 

When documents become plenty, which they 
have not yet, I will send them to you. There is 
a good deal of diversity among the whigs, as to 
who shall be their candidate for the Presidency, 
but I think it will result in favor of General 
Taylor. 

As to Mr. Graham's ^ application for a Lieuten- 
ancy, I have already submitted it to the President 
in the best way I could think of to give it chance 
of success. I wrote him about it ; and do not know 
anything more that I can do for him. You know I 

* Perhaps Menton Graham, schoolmaster at New Salem, and 
an early and helpful friend of Lincoln. 



To Andrew McCallen 27 

can have no intimacy with the President, which 
might give me personal influence over him. 
In great haste, yours as ever 

A. Lincoln. 

To Samuel D. Marshall ^ 

Washington, Jan. 22, 1848. 

Dear Sam: Your letter of the 15th is received. 
Your letter to me concerning our Dorman Case was 
also received, while I was verj' busy preparing to 
start on here. I handed the letter to Judge Logan 
and extorted a special promise from him to ex- 
amine the case & write you. Although I know the 
Judge to be growing somewhat negligent, I did not 
doubt that, from the peculiarity of this case, and 
his very assuring promise, he would attend to it. 
I know he intended to do it ; but I suppose he has 
forgotten it. I know nothing tliat I can here do 
in the matter. 

As to the matter of your lost horse, I will look 
into it, & do something if I can. 

Yours truly A. Lincoln. 

To Andrew McCallen ^ 

Washington, Feb. 4, 1848. 

Friend McCallen : Yours of the 20th January is 
received. There is now some probability of peace, 

* Original owned by Misses Genevieve and Elizabeth Mar- 
shall, Shawneetown, 111. * A lawyer in Shawneetown, 111. 



28 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

but should the war go on, I think volunteers with 
the right of electing their own officers will be voted, 
but that no more regulars will be voted. Until 
congress shall act, of course nothing can be done 
toward getting your Regiment into the service. 
Whenever it shall act I shall be happy to assist 
you in any way I can. 

Yours truly 

A. Lincoln. 
P.S. Don't pay postage on letters to me. I am 
entitled to them free. 

A.L. 

To Richard S. Thomas 

Washington, March i, 1848. 

Friend Richard: Your letter of the 12th Feb. to- 
gether with the petition for a mail route was re- 
ceived last night. Strange it was on the road so 
long. I shall present the petition, and give it my 
best attention. 

Your second letter was received, and I thought 
I had answered it. I am not a candidate for re- 
nomination or election. 

Excuse the shortness of this letter; I am really 

very much hurried. 

Yours as ever 

A. Lincoln. 
R. S. Thomas, 
Virginia, Ills. 



To Richard S. Thomas 29 

To Richard S. Thomas 

Washington, March 30, 1S48 

Dear Richard: Having a few leisure moments, I 
employ them to say a word about your petition 
concerning school lands. The petition was referred 
to the Land Committee of which I am not a mem- 
ber; so that while in Committee, I can have no 
direct agency in the matter. INIcClernand of our 
state is on that committee; and he told me yes- 
terday, or the day before, that the Committee had 
unanimously determined to do nothing in the mat- 
ter, so far as concerns the townships which have 
entire sixteenth sections, but which are of little 
or no value ; because to enter upon this, would be to 
break up the entire present system of school lands 
throughout the United States, which ^^•ould be 
immensely inconvenient, and which, after all, could 
never result in anything much nearer equalit^^ than 
the present system. He says the Committee are 
for the petition so far as concerns fractional town- 
ships, which have no sbcteenth section, or only 
fractional ones, containing less than a thirt^'- 
sLxth of the land of the to\MishIp. He says they 
think there is already an old law concerning the 
case; and that they are investigating it, and if 
necessary to effect the object, they will report a 
bill accordingly. Yours as ever, 

A. Lincoln. 



30 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

To Rev. Henry Slicer 

Washington, June i, 1848. 
Rev. Hy. Slicer. 

Dear Sir : Your letter of the 30*!" ulto. was re- 
ceived last night. I very cheerfully comply with 
your request, so far as I am able. 

As I remember, the House ordered the raising 
of two committees, one of Arrangements, number 
indefinite, the other, thirty in number, to attend 
the remains of Mr. Adams to Massachusetts. By 
some mistake, as I understood, a committee of 
thirty was appointed by the Speaker, as a commit- 
tee of Arrangements, of which I was a member. At 
our first meeting, the mistake was discovered, and 
the committee being much too numerous for con- 
venience, we delegated our authority to a sub- 
committee, of a smaller number of our own body, of 
which sub-committee, I was not a member. What- 
ever was done in the matter about which you en- 
quire, I presume was done by the sub-committee ; 
at all events, I have no knowledge of it whatever. 
Mr. Hudson was chairman of both the general, 
and the sub-committee, and who were the other 
members of the latter I do not certainly recol- 
lect. 

To your first special Interrogatory, to wit: "Were 
you consulted in regard to my exclusion from the 
services ? " I answer, I was not — perhaps because 



To Richard S. Thomas 31 

the arrangement I have stated excluded me from 
consuhations on all points. * 

To the second, to wit: "Was objection made 
to me, and if so, on what ground was it placed ? " 
I answer I know nothing whatever on the point. 
To the third, to wit: "Did my exclusion meet with 
your consent or approval ?''\ answer, I know nothing 
of the matter, and, of course, did not consent to, or 
approve of, it ; and I may add, that I know nothing 
which should have justified me in any attempt to 
put a mark of disapprobation upon you. 

So entirely ignorant was I, in relation to your 
having been excluded from the funeral services of 
Mr. Adams, that, until I received your letter, I 
should have given it as my recollection, that you 
did actually participate in those services. 
Yours respectfully, 

A. Lincoln. 



To Richard S. Thomas 

Washington, June 13, 1848. 

Friend Richard : In my anxiety for the result, I 
was led to attend the Philadelphia convention ; and 
on my return, I found your letter of the ist. I have 
entered the names you sent me on my book, and 
commenced sending documents to them. 

In relation to the school land questions, the land 
committee of both Houses are of opinion the law 



32 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

is already ample in relation to fractional townships. 
To make sure of the matter, I shall go to the Gen- 
eral Land Office to-morrow morning, enquire into 
the whole matter, and write you again. As to the 
report you saw in the Baltimore paper, on inquiry 
I think it must have been a report of the Senate. 
No such bill has passed the House; but Breese ^ 
says he reported such a bill to the Senate, which he 
supposes has passed that body. I think I wrote 
you once before, that I thought no such bill 
could become a law, and gave my reasons for the 
opinion. Lest I am mistaken in my recollection, 
I now give you those reasons briefly. The jus- 
tice of such a law rests upon the principle that 
every township should have a section of equal 
value with every other township, in proportion to 
its capacity for population. Now, to adopt this 
principle, and practically apply it, would entirely 
break up the present system, in relation to school 
sections, and require an amount of agencies and 
labor, more than equal in expense to the whole 
expense of the present land system. Seeing this, 
members of congress are disinclined to do a very 
little, and leave undone very much of a matter all 
standing on the same principle. 

It is now obvious, that in the beginning of our 
land system, one thirty-sixth of the proceeds of 
the land should have been given for school purposes, 

* Sidney Breese, Senator from Illinois, 1843-49. 



To Hogan 33 

instead of giving the land itself; and then the states 
could have distributed the fund or the interest of 
it equally. 

Wisconsin, on coming into the Union has man- 
aged to adopt this plan substantially. Should the 
bill from the Senate come up in the House, of 
course I shall not use the above argument, or any 
other argument against it; but on the contrar}% 
shall do what I can to have it passed. Still, I doubt 
its ultimate success. 

Yours forever A. Lincoln. 

To Richard S. Thomas 

Washington, June 19, 1848. 

Friend Thomas: Do you know any democrats 
w ho will vote for Taylor ? and if so, what are their 
names ? Do 3'ou know' any \\'liigs who will not vote 
for him r and if so, what are their names ? and for 
whom will they vote ? 
Please answer this just as soon as it is received. 
Yours as ever, 

A. Lincoln. 

To Hogan ^ 

Washington, July 14, 1848. 

Friend Hogan : Soon after I received yours, I 
went personally to the General Land Office, for 

^ Copy furnished by the courtesy of Mr. Judd Stewart. 



34 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

the information you desired. Judge Young ^ took a 
memorandum, and promised to do what he could. 
Last night he sent me what accompanies this, 
which I suppose is all the information can be 
had. 

Taylorism seems to be going right for which I 
am very glad. Keep the ball rolling. 
Yours as ever, 

A. Lincoln. 



To William Schouler ^ 

Washington, August 8, 1848. 
Friend Schooler [sic\ — I am remaining here for 
two weeks to frank documents. Now that the 
Presidential Candidates are all set, I will thank 
you for your undisguised opinion as to what New 
England generally and Massachusetts particularly 
will do. Your opinion as to the nomination of 
Taylor held so good that I have confidence in your 
predictions. 

Very truly Yours 

A. Lincoln 

^ Richard M. Young, Commissioner of the General Land 
Office, 1847-50. 

* Editor and publisher of the Boston Daily Atlas. Original 
owned by Mr. James Schouler. Printed in Proceedings of the 
Massachusetts Historical Society, XLii, 80 (Jan., 1909). 



To William Schouler 35 

To William Schouler ^ 

Washington, August 28, 1848 
Friend Schooler [sic], — Your letter of the 21^^ was 
received two or three days ago, and for which 
please accept my thanks, both for your courtesy 
and the encouraging news in it. The news we are 
receiving here now from all parts is on the look- 
up. We have had several letters from Ohio to-day, 
all encouraging. Two of them inform us that Hon. 
C. B. Smith,^ on his way here, addressed a larger 
and more enthusiastic audience, at Cincinnati, than 
has been seen in that city since 1840. Smith himself 
wrote one of the letters ; and he says the signs are 
decidedly good. Letters from the Reserve are of 
the same character. The tone of the letters — free 
from despondency — full of hope — is what par- 
ticularly encourages me. If a man is scared when 
he writes, I think I can detect it, when I see what 
he writes. 

I would rather not be put upon explaining how 
Logan was defeated in my district. In the first place 
I have no particulars from there, my friends, sup- 
posing I am on the road home, not having written 
me. Whether there was a full turn out of the 

^ Original owned by Mr. James Schouler. Printed in PrO' 
ceedings of the Massachusetts Historical Society, XLii, 80 (Jan., 
1909). 

* Caleb Blood Smith, Whig Representative from Indiana, 
1843-49, and later Lincoln's Secretary of the Interior. 



36 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

voters I have as yet not learned. The most I can 
now say is that a good many Whigs, without good 
cause, as I think, were unwilling to go for Logan, 
and some of them so wrote me before the election. 
On the other hand Harris^ was a Major of the war, 
and fought at Cerro Gordo, where several \Miigs 
of the district fought with him. These two facts 
and their effects, I presume tell the whole story. 
That there is any political change against us in the 
district I cannot believe; because I wrote some 
time ago to every county of the district for an 
account of changes; and in answer I got the 
names of four against us, eighty-three for us. I 
dislike to predict, but it seems to me the district 
must and will be found right side up again in 
November. 

Yours Truly 

A Lincoln. 



To Walter Davis 

Washington, Jan. 5, 1849. 

Friend Walter: Your letter is received. WTien 
I last saw you, I said, that if the distribution of 
the offices should fall into my hands, you should 
have something, and I now say as much, but 
can say no more. I know no more now than I 

^ Thomas L. Harris, Democratic Representative from Illi- 
nois, 1849-51, 1855-58. 



To C. R. Welles zi 

knew when you saw me, as to whether the present 
officers will be removed, or if they shall, whether 
/ shall be allowed to name the persons to hll 
them. 

It will perhaps be better for both you and me, 
for you to say nothing about this. 

I shall do what I can about the Land claim on 
your brother Thomas' account.^ 
Yours as ever 

A. Lincoln 



To C. R. Welles 

Washington, Feb. 20, 1849, 

C. R. Welles, Esq. 

Dear Sir: This is Tuesday evening, and your 
letter enclosing the one of Young ^ Brothers to you, 
saying the money sent by me to them had not been 
received, came to hand last Saturday night. The 
facts, which are perfectly fresh in my recollection, 
are these : You gave me the money in a letter (open 
I believe) directed to Young & Brothers. To make 
it more secure than it would be in my hat, where 
I carr}' most all my packages, I put it in my trunk. 
I had a great many jobs to do in St. Louis: and by 
the ver>- extra care I had taken of yours, overlooked 

^ See letters in reference to Davis's appointment as Receiver 
of the Land OtSce at Springfield, 111., in JTorks, Xicolay and Hay, 
1894,1,152, 155, 157, and same, Tandy'sed., 1905,11,112,115, 122. 



38 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

it. On the Steam Boat near the mouth of the Ohio, 
I opened the trunk, and discovered the letter. I 
then began to cast about for some safe hand to 
send it back by. Mr. Yeatman, Judge Pope's son- 
in-law, and step-son of Mr. Bell of Tennessee, was 
on board, and was to return immediately to St. 
Louis, from the Mouth of Cumberland. At my re- 
quest, he took the letter and promised to deliver it, 
and I heard no more about it till I received your 
letter on Saturday. It so happens that Mr. Yeat- 
man is now in this City ; I called on him last night 
about it ; he said he remembered my giving him the 
letter, and he could remember nothing more of it. 
He told me he would try and refresh his memory, 
and see me again concerning it today, which, how- 
ever, he has not done. I will try to see him to- 
morrow and write you again. He is a young man, 
as I understand, of unquestioned, and unques- 
tionable character; and this makes me fear some 
pickpocket on the boat may have seen me give 
him the letter, and slipped it from him. In this 
way, never seeing the letter again, he would, natur- 
ally enough, never think of it again. 
Yours truly, 

A. Lincoln. 



To John M. Clayton 39 

To Thomas Ewing, Secretary of the Interior 

Washington June 22, 1849. 

Hon. Secretary of the Interior. 

Sir: Please transmit to me the papers on file in 
your Department, recommending me for Commis- 
sioner of General Land office, if not inconsistent 
with the rules of the Department. 
Your obedient Servt. 

A. Lincoln. 

To John M. Clayton, Secretary of State 

Springfield, III., 
July 28, 1849. 

Hon. J. M. Clayton. 

Dear Sir: It is with some hesitation I presume to 
address this letter — and yet I wish not only you, 
but the whole cabinet, and the President too, would 
consider the subject matter of it. My being among 
the People while you and they are not, will excuse 
the apparent presumption. It is understood that 
the President at first adopted, as a general rule, to 
throw the responsibility of the appointments upon 
the respective Departments; and that such rule is 
adhered to and practised upon. This course I at 
first thought proper; and, of course, I am not now 
complaining of it. Still I am disappointed with the 
effect of it on the public mind. It is fixing for the 
President the unjust and ruinous character of being 



40 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

a mere man of straw. This must be arrested, or it 
will damn us all inevitably. It is said Gen. Taylor 
and his officers held a council of war, at Palo Alto 
(I believe); and that he then fought the battle 
against unanimous opinion of those officers. This 
fact (no matter whether rightfully or wrongfully) 
gives him more popularity than ten thousand sub- 
missions, however really wise and magnanimous 
those submissions may be. 

The appointments need be no better than they 
have been, but the public must be brought to un- 
derstand, that they are the President's appoint- 
ments. He must occasionally say, or seem to say, 
"by the Eternal," "I take the responsibility." 
Those phrases were the "Samson's locks" of Gen. 
Jackson, and we dare not disregard the lessons of 
experience. 

Your Ob't Sev't 

A. Lincoln 



To Peter Hitchcock 

Cincinnati, Dec 24, 1849. 
Peter Hitchcock, Esq., 

Judge l^c at Columbus. 

Dear Sir: Mr. Fox informed me this morning 

that I had better write to you in reference to the 

case of Lewis Logan and Steamboat Chipper now 

on the docket. We have been ready at any time to 



To S. Emmons 41 

take up the case but have waited for the brief of the 
other side. We have not yet received it, but it is 
promised us to-day. 

Judge Coffin left here yesterday saying that he 
would have the case put down for Friday. If I get 
the brief to-day or to-morrow I presume we can be 
ready to hear it then and will be at Columbus for 
that purpose. 

We are very anxious to have it heard on ac- 
count of our clients in this case and because the 
same question presented in the record is now be- 
fore the Courts of this county, in several cases. 
Some cause, I am not fully aware what, has pre- 
vented the counsel from furnishing the brief &c, I 
hope the case will not be continued. 

Yours respectfully, A. Lincoln. 

To S. Emmons 

Springfield, Feb. 9, 1850. 
S. Emmons, Esq. 

Dear Sir: Yours of the 2"^ was not received till 
yesterday. I shall be entirely satisfied for you to 
receive the appointment you desire ; still I know by 
conversation with the Marshal that he will look 
to the wishes of the people of your county, rather 
than to mine, as to who shall have the appointment. 

Therefore as your friend, I advise you to get 
the recommendation of some of your prominent 



42 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

whigs — Dummer, Dick Thomas, Arenz and such 
men, and I will most cheerfully present them to 
the Marshal when he shall be here. 
Very truly your friend 

A. Lincoln 



To Richard S. Thomas 

Springfield, June 27, 1850. 

Dear Thomas: I am ashamed of not sooner an- 
swering your letter, herewith returned; and my 
only apologies are, first, that I have been very busy 
in the U.S. court; and second, that when I received 
the letter I put it in my old hat, and buying a new 
one the next day, the old one was set aside, and 
so the letter lost sight of for a time. 

Either of the forms you gave (the latter rather 
preferable) would do, I think, if it were proper to 
frame a suit on the bond, in which sureties as well 
as principal are to be held, on the 27th section. 
But after a good deal of reflection, I think suits 
under the 27th section are to be brought only 
against the offender himself for penalties incurred, 
and not against him and his sureties on his bond. 
If you sue on the bond, you can go for nothing 
but what is covered by the condition of the bond ; 
and what is so covered.? "that the applicant will 
keep an orderly house, and that he will not permit 
any unlawful gaming or riotous conduct in his 



To Richard S. Thomas 43 

house." Now look quite through the chapter and 
find what penahy is given for "disorderly house," 
"unlawful gaming" or "riotous conduct," or for 
all three together. The first eight sections say 
nothing about grocery keepers ; the ninth provides 
for granting the license and taking the bond; the 
tenth, eleventh, twelfth, thirteenth and fourteenth 
give no penalty or penalties; the fifteenth cannot 
apply to this case, because it relates to selling with- 
out license; the sixteenth gives a penalty, but not 
for any of the causes covered by the bond; the 
seventeenth has nothing to the purposes ; the eight- 
eenth goes to the causes covered by the bond, but 
no pecuniary penalty is given by it; the 19th, 20th 
and 2 1st do not touch the causes covered by the 
bond, and with those sections the chapter ends as 
to grocery keepers. Now I think you are to bring 
just such a suit on the bond taken under the ninth 
section, as you would bring, if the 27th section had 
no existence. 

Bring the suit in the name of whoever, on the 
face of the bond, is made the obligee, and for the 
use of whoever is entitled to the money when col- 
lected ; that is, if the bond is given to the people of 
the state of Illinois, your first leading, which I mark 
(A), is right; if the bond is given to an individual, 
let his name stand in place of that of the People. 
Yours as ever, 

A. Lincoln. 



44 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

To Thomas Corwin ^ 

Springfield, III., Sept i [1850?] 

Hon Thomas Corwin: This will introduce to your 
acquaintance my friend Simeon Francis, editor of 
the Illinois Journal. He will desire an interview 
with the new Secretary of the Interior, with whom 
I am not acquainted. I shall be greatly obliged if 
you will procure him a favorable introduction to 
that gentleman, and show him any other attention 
which the press of your duties will permit. 
Your Ob'^ Serv't, 

A. Lincoln 

To D. M. Irwin 2 

D. M. Irwin. 

Dear Sir: Above is the Bill as you requested me 
to send you. Logan only attended the first trial in 
the Circuit Court. I alone, that is without any 
partner, attended the case in the Supreme Court. 
In the Chancery case Mr. Herndon was my part- 
ner. I mention all this to explain the three separate 
bills. 

Yours &c 

A. Lincoln 

* Mr. Corwin had resigned as Senator from Ohio, July 22, 1850, 
to become Secretary of the Treasury'' under President Taylor. 

2 At bottom of a bill against "The Heirs of Payne" divided 
into $20, $10, and $\o, and covering 1844-50. 



To Andrew McCallen 45 

To Wilson, Hotel Proprietor 

Springfield Illinois 
January 1851 

Mr. Wilson: 

Take care of this boy ^ until to-morrow, or longer 
if the weather is bad, and send the bill to me. 

A. Lincoln. 

To Wallace 

Springfield, III. 
Jan. 1851. 

Mr. Wallace, Peoria : 

Dear Sir: This boy wants to reach the Rock 
River country somewhere near Beloit. If he needs 
any assistance so you can help him in any way, it 
will be appreciated, and I will be responsible. 

Yours, A. Lincoln 

To Andrew McCallen 

Springfield, III., July 4, 1851 

Andrew McCallen, 

Dear Sir: I have news from Ottawa that we win 
our Gallatin and Saline county case. As the Dutch 
justice said when he married folks, "Now vere ish 
my hundred tollars " .? 

Yours truly, A. Lincoln 

* The boy mentioned in this note and the next was Gilbert 
J. Greene, who set type in the New York Tribune office. 



46 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 



To L. M. Hays 

Mount Pulaski, Logan Co. Ills 
Sept. 8, 1853. 

Mr. L. M. Hays, 

Dear Sir: Court is in session here now, and on 
yesterday I got a judgment against G. W. Tenley 
for ^i 16, 90 cents. The reason the amount was no 
larger was that the defendant proved by two wit- 
nesses — a Wm. Dodd, and a Dr. Mershow — that 
T. P. Taylor, in his Hfetime, told them that Tenley, 
in 1837, had offered to pay him the money on the 
note, and that he refused to take it, saying he never 
intended to collect it, and would give up, or de- 
stroy, the note ; on which proof the court decided, 
and I think correctly, that interest could not be 
allowed between the offer to pay and the bringing 
of the suit. This cut off all the interest but the 
$16.90 as a fee, and will send you the $100 in any 
way you may direct. I am following the Circuit 
and shall be at Bloomington, Ills., two weeks, 
ending on the 24th of this month, from which place 
I will send you the money, if you will have a letter 
to reach me there on or before the last named day. 
I can buy an Eastern draft at Bloomington, or at 
Springfield after my return there, which I suppose 
will be the best way of remitting the money. 
Yours etc. 

A. Lincoln. 



To T. R. Webber 47 

To T. R. Webber 

Bloomington, Sept 12, 1853. 

T. R. Webber, Esq. 

My dear Sir: On my arrival here to court, I find 
that McLean county has assessed the land and 
other property of the Central Railroad for the 
purpose of county taxation. An effort is about to 
be made to get the question of the right to so tax 
the Co. before the court and ultimately before the 
supreme court, and the Co. are offering to engage 
me for them. As this will be the same question I 
have had under consideration for you, I am some- 
what trammelled by what has passed between you 
and me, feeling that you have the first right to my 
services, if you choose to secure me a fee some- 
thing near such as I can get from the other side. 

The question in its magnitude to the Co. on 
the one hand and the counties in which the Co. 
has land on the other is the largest law question 
that can now be got up in the State, and therefore 
in justice to myself, I can not afford, if I can help 
it, to miss a fee altogether. If you choose to release 
me, say so by return mail, and there an end. If 
you wish to retain me, you better get authority 
from your court, come directly over in the stage 
and make common cause with this county. 
Very truly your friend, 

A. Lincoln 



48 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

To L. M. Hays ^ 

Springfield, Illinois, 
Nov. II, 1853. 

L. M. Hays, Esq. 

Dear Sir: Inclosed is the draft for one hundred 

dollars. Absence from home prevented my receiving 

your letter of the 12th October until yesterday. 

Yours truly, A. Lincoln. 

To Henry E. Dummer 

Springfield, Nov. 17, 1853. 

Dear Dummer : While I was at Beardstown I 
forgot to tell you that William Butler says if you 
will give him charge, and full discretion, of a claim 
in your hands, against George G. Grubb, late of 
Springfield, now of Chicago, he knows how, and 
can and will make something out of it for you. 
Please write him. 

Yours truly, A. Lincoln. 

To Henry E. Dummer 

Springfield Dec 26, 1853. 

H. E. Dummer, Esq. 

My dear Sir: Butler has just shown me your letter 
to him concerning the Grubb debt ; and in relation 
to your intimation that you might be induced to 

* Original owned by Mr. Judd Stewart. 



To John Marshall 49 

sell it, he desires me to say to you that in a few days 
over three months, he is sure to get the principal 
of the debt (without interest) and that after you 
shall have received this information, he will enter- 
tain any proposition you may make to sell. 
Please write him again. 

Yours as ever, 

A. Lincoln. 

To John Marshall ^ 

Springfield, Feby. 8, 1854. 

Hon. John Marshall 

Shawneetozvn, Ills. 
My dear Sir: Your letter of the ist inst. was re- 
ceived yesterday. I went at once to the Express 
Office, got the books, placed twenty-three of them 
at one Book-Store, & twenty-four at another, for 
sale, at a commission of ten per cent, and took 
their receipts. Of the other three books, I took one 
to the Register, one to the Journal, and took one 
home with me. I found that the editors and book- 
sellers had all previously seen favorable notices 
of the work; and one of the booksellers had sent 
an order to Cincinnati for some copies of it. I am 
not much of a reader of this sort of literature ; but 
my wife got hold of the volume I took home, read 

^ One of the Territorial Judges of Illinois and the founder of 
the first bank in the State. Original owned by Mrs. H. H. 
Hayes, a granddaughter of Judge Marshall. 



50 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

it half through last night, and is greatly interested 
in it. When the papers here shall have noticed it, 
I will send you copies. The charge at the Express 
office was only $1.50; I return herewith one dollar, 
& hold fifty cents subject to your order. 

My attention to the matter has been rather a 
pleasure than a trouble. 

Yours truly, A. Lincoln. 



To O. L. Davis ^ 

Springfield June 22, 1854. 

O. L. Davis, Esq. 

Dear Sir: — You, no doubt, remember the en- 
closed memorandum being handed me in your office. 

I have just made the desired search, and find 
that no such deed has ever been here. Campbell, the 
auditor, says that if it were here, it would be in his 
office, and that he has hunted for it a dozen times, 
and could never find it. He says that one time and 
another, he has heard much about the matter, that 
it was not a deed for Right of Way, but a deed, 
outright, for Depot-ground — at least, a sale for 
Depot-ground, and there may never have been a 
deed. He says, if there is a deed, it is most probable 
General Alexander, of Paris, has it. 
Yours truly, 

A. Lincoln. 

* A lawyer of Illinois. Printed in Writings, Lapsley ed., vii, 381. 



To Richard Yates 51 

To Richard S. Thomas 

Springfield, Aug. 24, 1854. 
Hon. R. S. Thomas. 

Dear Sir: Your letter of the 19th was received 
day before yesterday. The payee of the note did 
write me that he had written Allard on the subject 
of the note in your hands; so that when Allard 
shows you the letter, you need not doubt its gen- 
uineness. 

If the letter does unconditionally, or only with 
the condition of any consent, agree to take ^iio. 
and my fee, settle the matter that way. As to the 
amount of my fee, take ten dollars, which you 
and I will divide equally. 

Yours as ever 

A. Lincoln. 

To Richard Yates ^ 

Naples, Oct. 30, 1854. 

Dear Yates : I am here now going to Quincy, to 
try to give Mr. Williams a little life. I expect to be 
back in time to speak at Carlinville on Saturday, if 
thought expedient. What induces me to write now 
is that at Jacksonville as I came down to-day, I 

* The future War Governor of Illinois was at this time run- 
ning for Congress, and Lincoln was stumping for him. Original 
owned by Governor Edward F. Dunne, of Illinois. 



52 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

learned that the English in Morgan county have 
become dissatisfied about No-Nothingism. Our 
friends, however, think they have got the difficulty 
arrested. Nevertheless, it would be safe, I think, 
to do something on the subject which you alone 
can do. 

The inclosed letter, or draft of a letter, I have 
drawn up, of which I think it would be well to 
make several copies, and have one placed in the 
hand of a safe friend, at each precinct where any 
considerable number of foreign citizens, German 
as well as English vote. Not knowing exactly where 
a letter will reach you soonest, I fear this can not be 
very promptly attended to; but if the copies get 
into the proper hands the day before the election, 
it will be time enough. 

The whole of this is, of course, subject to your 
own judgment. 

Lincoln. 



To Jacob Harding ^ 
Clinton, DeWitt Co., Nov. ii, 1854. 
J. Harding, Esq. 

My dear Sir : I have a suspicion that a whig has 
been selected to the Legislature from Edgar. If 
this is not so, why then '^nix cum arous/' but if it 
is so then could you not make a mark with him for 

^ At Paris, 111, Original owned by Mr. Jesse W. Weik. 



To Orville H. Browning 53 

me for U.S. Senator.? I really have some chance. 
Please write me at Springfield, giving me the names, 
post offices and political positions, of your repre- 
sentative and senator whoever they may be. 
Let this be confidential. 

Yours truly, 

A. Lincoln 



To Orville H. Browning 

Springfield, Nov. 12, 1854. 

Dear Browning : At daylight this morning after 
the election, I had to go to court at Dewitt county, 
and I then had nothing of any account to write 
you. On my return last night, I found your letter. 
Yates is beaten from 100 to 150. The whole thing 
was done in Morgan and Scott counties ; in all the 
rest of the District we did better than we expected. 
The quarrel over the Insane Asylum and the turn- 
ing of about 200 English whigs in the two counties 
against him, because of Know-Nothingism was 
what did the work for him. He now has in the two 
counties only about 100 majority, whereas two 
years ago he had 521. 

We now understand here that Mr. Williams is 
beaten also. Schuyler and Brown are said to have 
played thunder. 

It looks as if Anti-Nebraska will have the H.R., 
the senate doubtful. By the returns in. Miller 



54 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

appears to have beaten Moore for Treasurer. The 
only thing that throws doubt upon this is, that 
there is not much in from the South yet ; and among 
the Httle that is in, there are some favorable signs 
to Moore. For instance, in Green, Hains beats 
Yates over 400 while Moore beats Miller over 
900. Also in St. Clair Moore has over 900 ma- 
jority, while on the contrary Trumbull and Anti- 
Nebraska generally have about 900 majority. 

In all other places heard from Moore is getting 
along about like Nebraska. From what I see I 
think he must be beaten an average of 2500 in 
each of four Northern Congressional Districts. 
Washburn,^ Woodworth, Norton and Knox are 
certainly elected. It is believed Norton has a ma- 
jority in every county of his District — in Ver- 
million alone 1120. Trumbull's election is sure 
by a very large majority. The Democrats here 
claim that Allen is reelected ; and I fear it is so, 
though it is not quite certain. In the four North- 
ern counties, old Col. Archer gains over 400 on 
him ; and I can hear nothing from any other county, 
though it is probable that the dems. have some- 
thing. 

I believe this is all I know. 

Yours truly, 

A. Lincoln. 

1 Elihu B. Washburne, who, unlike his brothers, spelled his 
name with an e. 



To Henry E. Dummer 55 

To Leonard Swett ^ 

Springfield Dec. 17, 1854. 

L. SwETT, Esq., 

Dear Sir : I cannot leam of a single copy of the 
Revised Codes being here for sale. Sorry but it 
seems to be so. 

Does the Rev. John S. Barger occasionally cross 
your path ? 

Yours truly 

A. Lincoln 



To Henry E. Dummer 

Springfield, March 10, 1855. 

H. E. Dummer, Esq. 

My dear Sir : A firm of lawyers in New York 
have sent me a money bond of $2000. for collec- 
tion.* Both the parties to the bond reside in New 
York but the obligor has a farm of 330 acres within 
about a mile of Rushville in Schuyler county, out 
of which by an attachment sent the obligor wishes 
collection to be made. As I do not practice in 
Rushville, I have concluded to send you this job, 
if you will write me saying you will take it. What 

* A distinguished trial lawyer of Illinois. 

* See letter of the same date to Sanford, Porter & Striker, the 
law firm referred to, in Works, Nicolay and Hay, Tandy's ed., 
1905, 11, 278. 



56 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

say you? The attorneys who send me the claim 
say their cUent is a good responsible man. 
Yours as ever, 

A. Lincoln 



To Henry E. Dummer 

Springfield March 19, 1855. 

Dear Dummer: Yours of the 1 1^^ is just received. 
Herewith are the bond and both of the letters of 
my correspondents in relation to it. The letters 
contain all the information I have on the subject. 
I wrote them the same day I wrote you that I 
was going to send you the claim if you would 
take it. 

Logan is willing to take the vacant seat on the 
Supreme Bench, but he is very anxious to not be 
beaten, if he is put on the track as a candidate. 
Our friends here, and everywhere so far as I have 
heard, are for him; but it behooves us to be wide 
awake. At the last congressional election there 
was a small majority against us in the middle 
Division. I am quite anxious for Logan's election, 
first because he will make the best Judge, and 
second because it would hurt his feelings to be 
beaten more than it would almost any one else. 
Your friend as ever 

A. Lincoln. 



To Jacob Harding 57 

To Jacob Harding ^ 

Danville May 25, 1855. 

Friend Harding: I have been reading your paper 
three or four years, and have paid you nothing for 
it. Herewith is a receipt of Sylvanus Sandford 
for two claims amounting to ten dollars. If he 
has collected the money, get it from him, and 
put it into your pocket, saying nothing further 
about it. 

And now, if you please, I should be glad for you 
to put in your paper of this week the names of 
Stephen T. Logan as a candidate for Judge of the 
Supreme Court; and of Stephen A. Corneau, for 
clerk of the Supreme Court. 

Please also print, and distribute a suitable num- 
ber of tickets for them ; and we at Springfield will 
pay the reasonable charge. 

As the sir-name [sic] of our candidate for clerk 
is rather an uncommon one, I try to write it very 
plainly — Corneau, the last letter being, not an 
"N"butanU. 

Very truly yours, 

A. Lincoln. 

* Original owned by Mr. Jesse W. Weik. 



5^ Letters of Abraham Lincoln 
To P. H. Watson ^ 

Springfield, III., July 23, 1855. 

P. H. Watson, Esq., 

Washington, D.C., 

My dear Sir: At our interview here in June, I 
understood you to say you would send me copies 
of the Bill and Answer in the case of McCormick ^ 
vs. Manny ^ and Co. and also of depositions, as 
fast as they could be taken and printed. I have 
had nothing from you since. However, I attended 
the U.S. Court at Chicago, and while there, got 
copies of the Bill and Answer. I write this particu- 
larly to urge you to forward on to me the addi- 
tional evidence as fast as you can. During August, 
and the remainder of this month, I can devote 
some time to the case, and, of course, I want all 
the material that can be had. 

During my stay at Chicago, I went out to Rock- 
ford, and spent half a day, examining and studying 
Manny's Machine. 

I think you ought to be sworn before the evi- 

* A prominent patent lawyer, afterwards Assistant Secretary 
of War under Lincoln and Stanton. Edwin M. Stanton was also 
associated with Lincoln in the defense of the case referred to in 
this letter, while Reverdy Johnson and E. N. Dickinson acted for 
the plaintiff. The defense won the case. This was the beginning of 
Lincoln's acquaintance with Stanton. Original owned by Mr. J. 
L. Smith, Ashtabula, O. 

' Cyrus H. McCormick. 

8 John H. Manny, of Rockford, 111. 



To Owen Lovejoy 59 

dence closes : of this however I leave you and others 
to judge. Very truly Yours, 

A. Lincoln. 



To Owen Lovejoy 

Springfield, August ii, 1855. 
Mr. Owen Lovejoy, 

My dear Sir : Yours of the 7th. was received the 
day before yesterday. Not even you are more 
anxious to prevent the extension of slavery than L 
And yet the political atmosphere is such, just now, 
that I fear to do anything, lest I do wrong. Know 
Nothingism has not yet entirely tumbled to pieces. 
Nay, it is even a little encouraged by the late elec- 
tions in Tennessee, Kentucky and Alabama. Until 
we can get the elements of this organization there 
is not sufficient material to successfully combat the 
Nebraska democracy with. We cannot get them 
so long as they cling to a hope of success under 
their own organization; and I fear an open push 
by us now may offend them and tend to prevent 
our ever getting them. About us here, they are 
mostly my old political and personal friends, and 
I have hoped this organization would die out with- 
out the painful necessity of my taking an open 
stand against them. Of their principles I think 
little better than I do of those of the slavery ex- 
tensionists. Indeed I do not perceive how any 



6o Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

one professing to be sensitive to the wrongs of the 
negro, can join in a league to degrade a class of 
white men. I have no objection to "fuse" with 
any body provided I can fuse on grounds which I 
think right. And I believe the opponents of slav- 
ery extension could now do this if it were not for 
the K.N. ism. In many speeches last summer I ad- 
vised those who did me the honor of a hearing to 
"stand with" any body who stands right, and I 
am still quite willing to follow my own advice. I 
lately saw in the Quincy \^^lig the report of a 
preamble and resolution made by Mr. Williams, as 
chairman of a committee, to a public meeting and 
adopted by the meeting. I saw them but once, and 
have them not now at command, but so far as I 
can remember them they occupy the ground I 
should be willing to "fuse" upon. As to my per- 
sonal movements this summer and fall, I am quite 
busy trying to pick up my lost crumbs of last 
year. I shall be here till September; then with 
Circuit till the 20th, then to Cincinnati awhile, 
after a Patent Right case, and back to the Cir- 
cuit to the end of November. I can be seen here 
any time this month and at Bloomington at any 
time from the loth. to the 17th. of September. As 
to an extra session of the Legislature, I should 
know no better how to bring that about than to 
lift myself over a fence by the straps of my boots. 
Yours truly, A. Lincoln. 



To Isham Reavis 6i 

To Manny & Co.^ 

Springfield, Sept. i, 1855. 

Messrs. Manny and Co. 
Rockford, III. 
Since I left Chicago about the i8th of July, I 
have heard nothing concerning the Reaper suit. I 
addressed a letter to Mr. Watson, at Washington, 
requesting him to forward me the evidence, from 
time to time, as it should be taken, but I have re- 
ceived no answer from him. 

Is it still the understanding that the case is to 
be heard at Cincinnati on the 20th inst. ? 
Please write me on the receipt of this. 
Yours truly, 

A. Lincoln. 

To Isham Reavis ^ 

Springfield, Nov'r 5, 1855. 

IsHAM Reavis, Esq. 

My Dear Sir : I have just reached home, and 
found your letter of the 23rd ult. I am from home 
too much of my time, for a young man to read law 
with me advantageously. If you are resolutely 
determined to make a lawyer of yourself, the 

* See note on p. 58. Original owned by Mr. J. L. Smith, Ashta- 
bula, O. 

^ From a copy in the possession of the Chicago Historical 
Society. 



62 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

thing is more than half done already. It is but a 
small matter whether you read with any body or 
not. I did not read with any one. Get the books, 
and read and study them till you understand them 
in their principal features; and that is the main 
thing. It is of no consequence to be in a large town 
while you are reading. I read at New Salem, which 
never had three hundred people living in it. The 
books, and your capacity for understanding them, 
are just the same in all places. Mr. Dummer is a 
very clever man and an excellent lawyer (much bet- 
ter than I, in law-learning) ; and I have no doubt 
he will cheerfully tell you what books to read, and 
also loan you the books. 

Always bear in mind that your own resolution 
to succeed, is more important than any other one 
thing. Very truly your friend, 

A. Lincoln. 



To A. L. Brewer 

Springfield, Ills., Nov 5, 1855. 
A. L. Brewer, Esq. 

Would have answered sooner, but was absent. At 
the September term, the defendant made fight, with 
apparent confidence, but the court decided for us, 
and we got judgement for the amount of the old 
judgement and interest. The main point taken in 
defence was that a bar on a short Act of Limitations 



To G. U. Miles 63 

we have here, had been completed after the claim 
was filed, in the Probate Court, but before a formal 
suit was brought. The court held that the filing of 
the claim saved the statute's bar. They took excep- 
tions and talk of going to the supreme court. That 
court sits in January and I have thought it best to 
wait till after the first term before I begin to press 
for payment. 

A. Lincoln 



To G. U. Miles 1 

Springfield, Feb. 14, 1856 

G. U. Miles, Esq. 

Petersburg^ Ills. 

Dear sir : Major Harris left a letter with me, in 
order that I might do something for you, in regard 
to your Goodman, or McAtee land. I understand 
the facts of the case to be as follows — 

Dec. 25, 1840. Christian Goodman gave his note 
and a mortgage on this land (S. E. fr. 1/4 of Sec: 
22-17-1) to William W. Vigal, to secure ^112 with 
twelve per cent. 

Jany. 7, 1842. Note credited ^50. 

Jany. 7, 1842. Note assigned by Vigal to Thomas 
Lewis. 

Aug. 20, 1842. Note assigned by Lewis to F. T. 
King. 

* Son-in-law of William H. Herndon, Lincoln's partner. 



64 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

Jany. 2, 1843 . Note assigned by King to Webster 
and Hickox. 

In 1850 or 185 1 I commenced a foreclosure suit 
on the note and mortgage, in the Circuit Court of 
Sangamon county, for Webster and Hickox. 

While this suit was pending, Goodman sold the 
land to McAtee, and Webster and Hickox also sold 
the note and mortgage to McAtee ; and Mr. Hickox 
directed me to do no more with the suit for him and 
Webster, but to hold it up subject to the direction 
of McAtee. So the suit has stood ever since, and 
still stands. 

I now learn from Major Harris' letter that Mc- 
Atee died, and that the land has since been sold 
(by the administrator of McAtee, to pay debts) to 
John Baker; and that Baker has since sold to you. 
The reason I write you is, that I cannot understand 
from the Major's letter precisely what your diffi- 
culty is. He tells me that McAtee bought the land 
of Goodman; and if this is so, and Goodman deeded 
it to him, I do not perceive that you are in any 
difficulty at all. Did McAtee pay Goodman for the 
land ? Did Goodman deed it to McAtee .? If either 
of them is true, Goodman's heirs have no right to 
the land, though his widow would have dower, if 
she did not join in the deed. Please write me ; and 
return me this letter, as it will save me hunting up 
the facts again. Yours &c, 

A. Lincoln. 



To Gustave Koerner 65 

To G. U. Miles 

Springfield, Ills. Feby 17, 1856. 
G. U. Miles — 

But, my dear Sir, I understand the land is worth 
^1200 or ^1500. Now deduct credit, and count in- 
terest on the note and you will find that $203.41 is 
the utmost a decree could be rendered for up to 
Jany 7, 1856. 

Suppose I foreclose, you will bid the same; if 
nobody bids more all will be well; but somebody 
will bid more ; and then how will you stand ? 

You will have to let the land go for that sum ; or 
bid higher and advance the cash for all above that 
sum. Don't you see ? 

A. Lincoln. 

To Gustave Koerner* 

Springfield, Feb. 18, 1856. 
Hon. G. p. Koerner. 

My dear sir: You left here sooner than I ex- 
pected; else I should have asked you on what 
terms you settled your fee in the case in connection 
with which we met at Carlinville last fall. I think 
you said you had no objection to tell me. If you 
have not please write me at once, as I wish to 
regulate my claim somewhat by yours. 

Very truly yours, A. Lincoln. 

^ Lieutenant-Governor of Illinois, 



66 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 



To George P. Floyd ^ 

Springfield, Illinois, 
February 21, 1856. 

Mr. George P. Floyd, 
Quincy, Illinois. 
Dear Sir: I have just received yours of 16^^, with 
check on Flagg & Savage for twenty-five dollars. 
You must think I am a high-priced man. You are 
too liberal with your money. 

Fifteen dollars is enough for the job. I send you 
a receipt for fifteen dollars, and return to you a 
ten-dollar bill. 

Yours truly, 

A. Lincoln. 

To Lyman Trumbull ^ 

Springfield, June 7, 1856 

Hon. Lyman Trumbull 

My dear Sir : The news of Buchanan's nomina- 
tion came yesterday; and a good many Whigs, of 
conservative feelings, and slight pro-slavery pro- 

^ Mr. Floyd had leased a hotel at Quincy, 111., and had em- 
ployed Lincoln to draw up the papers. Reprinted from an ar- 
ticle by Floyd in McClure's Magazine, xxx, 303 (Jan., 1908). 

2 This and the letters on pp. 69, 82, 83, 87, 96, 98, 100, 119, 
122, 136, 137, 140, 142, 144, 147, 151, 153, 168, 171, and 173 
are from an article entitled "A Lincoln Correspondence," by 
William H. Lambert, in the Century Magazine, iv, 17 (Feb., 
1909). 



To Lyman Trumbull (y^ 

clivities, withal, are inclining to go for him, and 
will do it, unless the Anti-Nebraska nomination 
shall be such as to divert them. The man to eflFect 
that object is Judge McLean ; and his nomination 
would save every Whig, except such as have al- 
ready gone over hook and line, as Singleton, Mor- 
rison, Constable, & others. J. T. Stuart, Anthony 
Thornton, James M. Davis (the old settler) and 
others like them, will heartily go for McLean, but 
will every one go for Buchanan, as against Chase, 
Banks, Seward, Blair or Fremont? I think they 
would stand Blair or Fremont for Vice-President — 
but not more. 

Now there is a grave question to be considered. 
Nine tenths of the Anti-Nebraska votes have to 
come from old Whigs. In setting stakes, is it safe to 
totally disregard them ? Can we possibly win, if we 
do so ? So far they have been disregarded. I need 
not point out the instances. - 

I think I may trust you to believe I do not say 
this on my own personal account. I am in, and 
shall go for any one nominated unless he be '' plat- 
formed " expressly, or impliedly, on some ground 
which I may think wrong. Since the nomination of 
Bissell we are in good trim in Illinois, save at the 
point I have indicated. If we can save pretty 
nearly all the Whigs, we shall elect him, I think, by 
a very large majority. ^ 

I address this to you, because your influence in 



68 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

the Anti-Nebraska nomination will be greater than 
that of any other Illinoian [sic]. 
Let this be confidential, 

Yours very truly 

A. Lincoln. 



To B. Clarke Lundy and Others ^ 

Springfield, July 28, 1856. 

B. Clarke Lundy & Others: 

On reaching home day before yesterday, I found 
your letter of the 15th. I regret to say I can not be 
with you on the 4^^ of Sept. I am under prior obli- 
gation to attend a meeting of our friends at Gales- 
burg on that day, if I can possibly leave our 
courts, which will then be in session. 

Stand by the cause^ and the cause will carry you 
through. 

Yours truly, A. Lincoln. 

To John M. Palmer ^ 

Springfield Aug i*S 1856. 

Hon. J. M. Palmer. 

Dear sir: It is our judgement that whether you 
do or do not finally stand as a Candidate for Con- 

^ Dr. B. C. Lundy was the son of Benjamin Lundy, the Aboli- 
tionist, of Baltimore. 

^ A major-general of volunteers in the War and Governor of 
Illinois, 1869-73. 



To Lyman Trumbull 69 

gress, it is better for you to not to publicly decline 
for a while. It is a long time to the Election, and 
what may turn up no one can tell. 
Yours truly, 

A. Lincoln 
Richard Yates 
W. H. Herndon 
Wm. Jayne 

To Lyman Trumbull ^ 

Springfield, Aug: ii. 1856 
Hon: L. Trumbull: 

My dear Sir: I have just returned from speaking 
at Paris and Grandview in Edgar County — & 
Charleston and Shelbyville, in Coles and Shelby 
counties. Our whole trouble along there has been 
& is Fillmoreism. It loosened considerably during 
the week, not under my preaching, but under the 
election returns from Mo., Ky., Ark., & N.C. I 
think we shall ultimately get all the Fillmore men, 
who are really anti-slavery extension — the rest 
will probably go to Buchanan where they right- 
fully belong; if they do not, so much the better 
for us. The great difficulty with anti-slavery 
extension Fillmore men, is that they suppose 
Fillmore as good as Fremont on that question; 
and it is a delicate point to argue them out of 

* See note on p. 66. 



70 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

it, they are so ready to think you are abusing 
Mr. Fillmore. 

Mr. ConkUng showed me a letter of yours, from 
which I infer you will not be in Ills, till nth Sept. 

But for that I was going to write you to make 
appointments at Paris, Charleston, Shelbyville, 
Hillsboro, &c — immediately after the adjourn- 
ment. They were tolerably well satisfied with my 
work along there; but they believe with me, that 
you can touch some points that I can not ; and they 
are very anxious to have you do it. 

Yours as ever A. Lincoln. 



To R. M. EwiNG 

Springfield, Nov. 12, 1856 

R. M. EwiNG, Esq. 

Petersburg, Ills. 

Dear Sir : Yours of the 8th inclosing the forged 
article from the *'New York Tribune" published 
in the Menard Index was received yesterday. Al- 
though the getting up of the thing was intended to 
deceive, and was very malicious and wicked, I do 
not think much could be made by exposing it. 
When you shall have exposed it, they will then say 
they merely meant it as a "take off" and never 
intended it to be understood as genuine. 

If you have a local paper there to simply de- 
nounce it as a forgery, that would be well enough ; 



To Rev. James Lemen 71 

but I doubt whether any thing else can be done 
with it to advantage. 

I am truly glad you are determined to fight on. 
In the next struggle I hope we shall be able to pull 
together. Let us all try to make it so. 

Yours respectfully, A. Lincoln. 



To Rev. James Lemen ^ 

Springfield, Illinois March 2, 1857. 

Rev. James Lemen, 

Friend Lemen : Thanking you for your warm ap- 
preciation of my view in a former letter as to the 
importance in many features of your collection of 
old family notes and papers, I will add a few words 
more as to Elijah P. Lovejoy's case. His letters 
among your old family notes were of more interest 
to me than even those of Thomas Jefferson, written 
to your father. Of course they [the latter] were 
exceedingly important as a part of the history of 
the " Jefferson-Lemen Anti-Slavery Pact," under 
which your father. Rev. James Lemen, Sr., as Jef- 
ferson's anti-slavery agent in Illinois, founded his 
anti-slavery churches, among which was the pres- 
ent Bethel church, which set in motion the forces 
which finally made Illinois a free state, all of which 
was splendid ; but Lovejoy's tragic death for free- 
dom in every sense marked his sad ending as the 

2 From W. C. MacNaul's Jefferson-Lemen Compact, 1915. 



72 Letters of Abraham Lincoiii 

most important single event that ever happened in 
the new world. 

Both your father and Lovejoy were pioneer 
leaders in the cause of freedom, and it has always 
been difficult for me to see why your father, who 
was a resolute, uncompromising, and aggressive 
leader, who boldly proclaimed his purpose to make 
both the territory and the state free, never aroused 
nor encountered any of that mob violence which 
both in St. Louis and Alton confronted or pursued 
Lovejoy, and finally doomed him to a felon's death 
and a martyr's crown. Perhaps the two cases are a 
little parallel with those of John and Peter. John 
was bold and fearless at the scene of the Crucifix- 
ion, standing near the cross receiving the Savior's 
request tocareforhis mother,butwas not annoyed; 
while Peter, whose disposition [was] to shrink from 
public view, seemed to catch the attention of 
members of the mob on every hand, until finally to 
throw public attention off, he denied his master 
with an oath; though later the grand old apostle 
redeemed himself grandly, and like Lovejoy, died a 
martyr to his faith. Of course, there was no similar- 
ity between Peter's treachery at the Temple and 
Lovejoy's splendid courage when the pitiless mob 
were closing around him. But in the cases of the 
two apostles at the scene mentioned, John was more 
prominent or loyal in his presence and attention to 
the Great Master than Peter was, but the latter 



To Jesse K. Dubois 73 

seemed to catch the attention of the mob ; and as 
Lovejoy, one of the most inoffensive of men, for 
merely printing a small paper, devoted to the free- 
dom of the body and mind of man, was pursued to 
his death ; while his older comrade in the cause of 
freedom. Rev. James Lemen, Sr., who boldly and 
aggressively proclaimed his purpose to make both 
the territory and the state free, was never molested 
a moment by the minions of violence. The madness 
and pitiless determination with which the mob 
steadily pursued Lovejoy to his doom, marks it as 
one of the most unreasoning and unreasonable in 
all time, except that which doomed the Savior to 
the cross. 

If ever you should come to Springfield again, do 
not fail to call. The memory of our many " evening 
sittings" here and elsewhere, as we called them, 
suggests many a pleasant hour, both pleasant and 
helpful. 

Truly yours, A. Lincoln. 

To Jesse K. Dubois ^ 

Springfield, April 6, 1857. 

Hon. J. K. Dubois, 

Auditor 
Dear Sir: — In answer to your queries in rela- 
tion to the fourth, eighth and ninth sections of the 

* Illinois Auditor of State. 



74 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

bank law of February 14, 1857, and the other provi- 
sions of law therein referred to, I give as my opin- 
ion, First : That no stocks whatever can be received 
by you at any greater rate of valuation than ten 
per cent less than the market price of said stocks, 
such market price to be ascertained, according to 
the old law. 

Second : That no non-interest paying bonds can, 
in any event, be received by you at any greater 
rate than fifty cents to the dollar and not even for 
that much, unless that market price shall be as high 
as sixty, the old law not being altered by the new, 
in this respect. 

Third : That in relation to the banks already in 
existence no new duty is imposed on you by the 
eighth section of the new law, unless such banks 
apply for the is siting of new circulating notes, in which 
case, it is your duty to be satisfied that they have 
the fifty thousand dollars actual cash capital, be- 
fore you issue such new notes. 

Note. As to the old law, I would follow [?] the 
construction of the old Auditor, till further advised. 

Fourth: That in relation, both to old and new 
banks, in the very language of the ninth sec- 
tion of the new law "No more circulating notes 
shall be issued, under any circumstances to any 
bank or association organized under said act until 
the Auditor shall be satisfied that such bank or 
association has such actual capital as is required 



To Joseph W. Brackett 75 

in the first" (eighth really meant) "section of this 
act." 

This opinion is given as to your duty under the 
new law after it takes effect, and is not intended 
to apply to the time of between passage and its 
taking effect. 

Yours truly, 

A. Lincoln. 



To Joseph W. Brackett^ 

Springfield, May i8, 1857. 

Joseph W. Brackett, Esq. 

Dear Sir : Your three letters, two dated April 
28th and the other May ist were received by me 
on the 9th of May, when I returned home after 
an absence of two wrecks. I went immediately to 
the Land Office to file the Declaration of Jacob 
Warner and Cyrus Conklin and failed to get the 
thing consummated in consequence of there being 
nothing in the Office showing the quantity of land 
in the tracts sought to be preempted. I think the 
Register's intentions were correct, but he was per- 
plexed as to what he ought to do, because of the 
peculiarity of the case and consequently he put 
me off from time to time till now. Herewith I send 
you the certificates bearing date May 9th, being 
the day I first presented the Declarations. 

1 At Rock Island, 111. 



76 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

I shall be ready to assist further in the cases 
when occasion arises. One of your letters had one 
dollar in it, and another ten. I paid two to the 
Register and pocketed the other nine. 
Yours, etc. 

A. Lincoln 



To Cornell, Waite y Jameson 

Springfield, June 2, 1857. 

Messrs. Cornell, Waite & Jameson, 
Chicago, III. 

Gentlemen : Yours of the 29th was duly received. 
This morning I went to the Register with four 
hundred dollars in gold in my hand and tendered 
to the Register of the Land Office a written appli- 
cation to enter the land as you requested, all which 
the Register declined. 

I have made a written memorandum of the facts, 
deposited the gold with J. Bunn (who furnished it 
to me on the draft you sent) and took his Certifi- 
cate of deposit, which certificate and memoran- 
dum I hold subject to your order. 

Now, if you please, send me ten dollars as a 
fee. 

Yours truly, 

A. Lincoln 



To Gustave Koerner '^^ 

To Gustave Koerner 

Springfield, July lo, 1857. 

Hon. G. Koerner. 

Dear Sir : Your letter of the 8th to Lincoln and 
Herndon was received and opened by Mr. Hern- 
don in my absence ; but finding it relating to busi- 
ness with which I was more familiar he laid it by 
till my return which was only yesterday. 

The judgement to Page and Bacon against the 
Ohio and Miss. Railroad Company in the United 
States court here, was taken, by confession on a 
cognovit, at the March term, 1856, for the sum 
of $312,413.74 including costs. Execution issued 
April i6th, 1856, which was by order of the plain- 
tiffs returned unsatisfied, sale having been post- 
poned June 6, 1856. While it was in the hands of 
the Marshal it was levied on the entire property 
of the Road (as I suppose, a large amount at any 
rate) which levy remains undisposed of. 

Will you please remember that our Sangamon 
Circuit Court commences Aug. 10, when I suppose 
our Quo Warranto cases will come up, and when 
I shall be glad to have the benefit of your legal as- 
sistance. 

Yours very truly, 

A. Lincoln. 



78 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

To Dr. B. Clarke Lundy ^ 

Springfield, Aug, 5, 1857. 

Dear Sir: Some time ago you wrote me express- 
ing the opinion that something should be done 
now, to secure the next Legislature. You are per- 
fectly right and I now suggest that, from the poll- 
books in the county clerk's office, you have made 
alphabetical lists of all the voters in each precinct 
or Township (I believe you have Township or- 
ganizations) the lists to be in separate letter-books, 
and to be corrected by striking off such as may 
have died or removed, and adding such as will be 
entitled to vote at the next election. This will not 
be a heavy job, and you see how like a map, it lays 
the whole field before you. You know, at once, 
how^ and with whom to work. 

You will have no trouble to carry your county 
of Putnam, but you are (as I remember) part of the 
Peoria Senatorial District, and that is close and 
questionable, so that you need every vote you can 
get in Putnam. 

Let all be so quiet that the adversary shall not be 
notified. 

Yours truly, 

A. Lincoln 

* Original owned by Charles W. McLellan, Champlain, N.Y. 



To Samuel Briggs 79 

To Hannah Armstrong ^ 

^ Springfield, III., 

Sept., 1857. 

Dear Mrs. Armstrong : I have just heard of your 
deep affliction, and the arrest of your son for mur- 
der. I can hardly believe that he can be capable 
of the crime alleged against him. It does not seem 
possible. I am anxious that he should be given a 
fair trial at any rate; and gratitude for your long- 
continued kindness to me in adverse circumstances 
prompts me to offer my humble services gratui- 
tously in his behalf. 

It will afford me an opportunity to requite, in a 
small degree, the favors I received at your hand, 
and that of your lamented husband, when your 
roof afforded me a grateful shelter, without money 
and without price. 

Yours truly, 

A. Lincoln. 

To Samuel Briggs 

Springfield, Sept. 29, 1857. 

Samuel Briggs, Esq. 

Dear Sir : Your letter in regard to organizing 
the town of Delevan, and also inclosing five dollars, 

* Mother of DuflF Armstrong, whom Lincoln defended on a 
charge of murder, obtaining a verdict of acquittal. 



8o Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

has been received. I have examined the statute and 
considered your questions, and am of opinion that 
the original election, having gone beyond the Town 
plot to the extent of a square mile, is lawful and 
valid. I think the Trustees can not exceed a mile 
square, as boundaries of the town, but may lessen 
them, within the mile square. 
The five dollars is a sufficient fee. 
Yours truly 

A. Lincoln 



To GUSTAVE KOERNER 

{Confidential) 

Springfield, Oct. 25, 1857. 

Hon. G. Koerner 

My dear sir: Our Sangamon Circuit Court is 
now in session, and will continue in session for two 
or three weeks yet. By agreement with Logan, 
I can fix up your Quo Warranto case, at any 
time during the term, for the Supreme Court this 
ensuing winter. Now for the object of this note. 
I want your authority, at my discretion^ to pass 
the case over the next term of the Supreme 
Court. I cannot mention the reason now ; but there 
is a reason which I believe you will appreciate, 
when you come to know it. The reason is precisely 
the same to you and to me, not being of any pe- 



To Joseph W. Brackett 8i 

cuniary interest to either. I write like letters to 
Brown and Yates. Please answer at once. 
Yours very truly. 

A. Lincoln 



To O. Bailey 

Springfield, Nov. 14, 1857. 
O. Bailey, Esq. 

Dear Sir : Your letter in relation to Railroad 
suits was duly received. I regret to say it is impos- 
sible for me to attend the courts in Coles or Edgar 
or any of the counties in Judge Harlan's circuit. 
I should be pleased to oblige you if I could. 
Yours truly, 

A. Lincoln 

To Joseph W. Brackett 

Springfield, Nov. 27, 1857. 

J. W. Brackett, Esq. 

Dear Sir : Yours of the 7th was received in due 
course. I have been to the Land Office two or three 
times about it and for the last time, this morn- 
ing. The Register will not receive and file the pre- 
emption proofs as you desire. He conceives it to 
be his duty to refuse. 

Yours, &c 

A. Lincoln 



82 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

To Lyman Trumbull ^ 

Chicago, Nov. 30. 1857. 

Hon : Lyman Trumbull. 

Dear Sir : Herewith you find duplicates of a no- 
tice which I wish to be served upon the Miss 
French, or now Mrs. Gray, who married the late 
Franklin C. Gray. You understand what per- 
son I mean. Please hand her one copy, and note 
on the other that you have done so, the date of 
service, and your signature & return it to me at 
Springfield. 

What think you of the probable "rumpus" 
among the Democracy over the Kansas Consti- 
tution? I think the Republicans should stand 
clear of it. In their view both the President and 
Douglas are wrong ; and they should not espouse 
the cause of either, because they may consider the 
other a little the farther wrong of the two. From 
what I am told here, Douglas tried, before leav- 
ing, to draw off some Republicans on this dodge, 
and even succeeded in making some impression 
on one or two. 

Yours very truly, 

A. Lincoln. 

* See note on p. 66. 



To Lyman Trumbull 83 

To Lyman Trumbull ^ 

Springfield, Dec. i8. 1857 
Hon: L. Trumbull: 

Dear Sir : Yours of the 7th telling me that Mrs. 
Gray is in Washington, reached [mej last night. 

Herewith I return the notices which I will thank 
you to serve and return as before requested. 

This notice is not required by lazv ; and I am giv- 
ing it merely because I think fairness requires it. 

Nearly all the Democrats here stick to Douglas ; 
but they are hobbling along with the idea that 
there is no split between him and Buchanan. 
Accordingly they indulge the most extravagant eu- 
logies on B., &his message; and insist that he has 
not indorsed the Lecompton Constitution. 

I wish not to tax your time ; but when you return 
the notice, I shall be glad to have your general view 
of the then present aspect of affairs. 
Yours very truly 

A. Lincoln 

To Lyman Trumbull ^ 

Bloomington, Dec. 28. 1857. 

Hon. Lyman Trumbull. 

Dear Sir: What does the "New York Tribune" 
mean by its constant eulogising, and admiring, 

* See note on p. 66. * See note on p. 66. 



84 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

and magnifying Douglas ? Does it, in this, speak 
the sentiments of the Republicans at Washington ? 
Have they concluded that the Republican cause, 
generally, can be best prompted by sacrificing us 
here in Illinois? If so we would like to know it 
soon; it will save us a great deal of labor to sur- 
render at once. 

As yet I have heard of no Republican here going 
over to Douglas; but if the *' Tribune" continues 
to din his praises into the ears of its five or ten thou- 
sand Republican readers in Illinois, it is more than 
can be hoped that all will stand firm. 

I am not complaining — I only wish a fair un- 
derstanding. Please write me at Springfield. 
Your Obt Servt. 

A. Lincoln 



To Andrew McCallen 

Springfield, June 19, 1858. 

Hon. a. McCallen. 

My dear Sir: Yours of the 12th by the hand of 
Mr. Edwards was duly received. I conversed sev- 
eral times freely with Mr. Olney, and I do not 
perceive that we here or the general convention 
here could rightfully determine anything between 
Messrs. Olney and Wiley. You in the District must 
fix that. 

Let me make a remark not suggested by your 



To Orville H. Browning 85 

letter. I think too much reliance is placed in 
noisy demonstrations, importing speakers from a 
distance and the like. They excite prejudice and 
close the avenues to sober reason. The "home- 
production" principle in my judgement is the best. 
You and Sexton and Olney and others whose hearts 
are in the work should quietly form your plans 
and carry them out energetically among your own 
neighbors. You perceive my idea; and I really 
think it the best. 

Yours very truly 

A. Lincoln. 



To Orville H. Browning 

Springfield, June 22, 1858. 

O. H. Browning, Esq. 

My dear Sir : Mrs. Macready has appeared here 
again this morning; and it now occurs to me as 
strange that I did not think to ask you whether 
you can surely be on hand at the next term, if we 
continue the case till then. Can you.'' Answer 
as soon as possible after receiving this. If you can 
possibly be here at this term say so, and about 
what day; but I understood you that probably 
you cannot be here again at this term. 
Yours truly, 

A. Lincoln. 



86 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

To John L. Scripps ^ 

Springfield June 23, 1858. 

John L. Scripps, Esq. 

My dear Sir : Your kind note of yesterday is 
duly received. I am much flattered by the esti- 
mate you place on my late speech; and yet I 
am much mortified that any part of it should be 
construed so difi^erently from any thing intended 
by me. The language, "place it where the public 
mind shall rest in the belief that it is in course 
of ultimate extinction,'* I used deliberately, not 
dreaming then, nor believing now, that it asserts 
or intimates any power or purpose, to interfere 
with slavery in the states where it exists. But to 
not cavil about language, I declare that whether 
the clause used by me will bear such construction 
or not, I never so intended it. I have declared a 
thousand times, and now repeat that, in my opinion, 
neither the General Government, nor any other 
power outside of the slave states, can constitution- 
ally or rightfully interfere with slaves or slavery 
where it already exists. I believe that whenever 
the effort to spread slavery into the new territories, 
by whatever means, and into the free states them- 
selves, by Supreme Court decisions, shall be fairly 
headed off, the institution will then be in course of 

* A Chicago journalist, author of the first biography of Lin- 
coln, New York Tribune Tracts, No. 6 (i860). 



To Lyman Trumbull 87 

ultimate extinction; and by the language used I 
meant only this. 

I do not intend this for publication; but still 
you may show it to any one you think fit. I think 
I shall, as you suggest, take some early occasion 
to publicly repeat the declaration I have already 
so often made as before stated. 

Yours very truly, 

A. Lincoln 



To Lyman Trumbull * 

Springfield, June 23, 1858 

Hon. Lyman Trumbull 

My dear Sir : Your letter of the i6th reached me 
only yesterday. We had already seen, by telegraph, 
a report of Douglas' general onslaught upon every- 
body but himself. I have this morning seen the 
"Washington Union," in which I think the Judge 
is rather worsted [worried ?] in regard to that on- 
slaught. 

In relation to the charge of an alliance between 
the Republicans and Buchanan men in this State, 
if being rather pleased to see a division in the ranks 
of the Democracy, and not doing anything to pre- 
vent it, be such alliance, then there is such alliance, 
— at least that is true of me. But if it be intended 
to charge that there is any alliance by which there 

^ See note on p. 66. 



88 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

is to be any concession of principle on either side, 
or furnishing of the sinews, or partition of offices, 
or swopping of votes, to any extent; or the doing 
of anything, great or small, on the one side, for a 
consideration, express or implied, on the other, no 
such thing is true so far as I know or believe. 

Before this reaches you, you will have seen the 
proceedings of our Republican State Convention. 
It was really a grand affair, and was, in all respects, 
all that our friends could desire. 

The resolution in effect nominating me for Sena- 
tor I suppose was passed more for the object of 
closing down upon this everlasting croaking about 
Wentworth than anything else. 

The signs look reasonably well. Our State ticket, 
I think, will be elected without much difficulty. 
But, with the advantages they have of us, we shall 
be very hard run to carry the Legislature. 

We shall greet your return home with great 
pleasure. 

Yours very truly 

A. Lincoln. 

To Robert Moseley 

Springfield, July 2, 1858. 

Robert Moseley, Esq. 

My dear Sir : Your letter of the 29th is received, 
and for which I thank you. Herewith I send a little 



To Gustave Koerner 89 

article which I wish you would have published in 
the "Prairie Beacon" next week. 

Besides my own recollection I have carefully 
examined the journals since I saw you and I know 
the editor will be entirely safe in publishing the 
article. Get it into the first paper. 
Yours very truly, 

A. Lincoln. 



To Gustave Koerner * 

Springfield July 15, 1858. 

Hon. G. Koerner. 

My dear Sir : I have just been called on by one 
of our German republicans here, to ascertain if 
Mr. Hecker could not be prevailed on to visit this 
region and address the Germans, at this place, and 
a few others at least. Please ascertain and write 
me. He would of course have to be paid something. 
Find out from him about how much. 

I have just returned from Chicago. Douglas 
took nothing by his motion there — in fact, by 
his rampant endorsement of the Dred Scott deci- 
sion he drove back a few republicans who were 
favorably inclined towards him. His tactics just 
now, in part is, to make it appear that he is hav- 
ing a triumphal entry into, and march through 
the country; but it is all as bombastic and hollow 

* Original owned by Miss Sophia M. Rombauer, St. Louis, Mo. 



90 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

as Napoleon's bulletins sent back from his cam- 
paign in Russia. I was present at his reception in 
Chicago, and it was certainly very large and im- 
posing; but judging from the opinions of others 
better acquainted with faces there, and by the 
strong call for me to speak, when he closed, I 
really believe we could have voted him down in 
that very crowd. 

Our meeting, twenty-four hours after, called 
only twelve hours before it came together and got 
up without trumpery, was really as large and five 
times as enthusiastic. -^ 

I write this for your private eye, to assure you 
that there is no solid shot in these bombastic pa- 
rades of his. 

Yours very truly, 

A. Lincoln. 



To Henry E. Dummer 

Springfield July 20, 1858. 

Henry E. Dummer, Esq. 

My dear Sir : When I was in Beardstown last 
spring, Dr. Sprague said if I would leave a bill, he 
would pay it before long. I do not now remember 
that I spoke to you about it. I am now in need of 
money. Suppose we say the amount shall be ^50. ? 
If the Dr. is satisfied with that, please get the 
money and send it to me. 



To Henry E. Dummer 91 

And while you have pen in hand, tell me what 
you may know about politics down your way. 
Yours as ever, 

A. Lincoln. 



To Henry C. Whitney ^ 

Springfield, August 2, 1858. 

Dear Whitney: Yours of the 31^^ is just received. 
I shall write to B. C. Cook^ at Ottawa and to 
Lovejoy himself on the subject you suggest. 

Pardon me for not writing a longer letter. I have 
a great many letters to write. I was at Monticello 
Thursday evening. Signs all very good. 
Your friend as ever 

A. Lincoln. 

To Henry E. Dummer ^ 

Springfield, Aug. 5 1858. 

Friend Dummer: Yours, not dated, just received. 
No accident preventing I shall be at Beardstown 

* A close legal and political associate of Lincoln and a personal 
friend; author of Life on the Circuit with Lincoln and a posthumous 
Life of Lincoln (1908). This letter was reproduced in facsimile 
in Life on the Circuit zcith Lincoln, p. 492. 

' Burton C. Cook. For a letter of this date referring appar- 
ently to Whitney's letter, see Works, Nicolay and Hay, Tandy's 
ed., 1905, III, 198. 

^ By courtesy of William F. Dummer, Chicago Historical 
Society. 



92 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

on the 1 2th. I thank you for the contents of your 
letter generally. I have not time now to notice the 
various points you suggest, but I will say I do not 
understand the Republican party to be committed 
to the proposition "No more slave States." I 
think they are not so committed. Most certainly 
they prefer there should be no more, but I know 
there are many of them who think we are under 
obligations to admit slave States from Texas, if 
such shall be presented for admission ; but I think 
the party as such is not committed either way. 
Your friend as ever, 

A. Lincoln. 



To GUSTAVE KOERNER 

Springfield, Aug. 6, 1858. 
Hon. G. Koerner. 

My dear Sir : Yesterday morning I found a drop 
letter from Governor Bissell ^ urging, partly in 
consequence of a letter from you, that my late 
speeches, or some of them shall be printed in 
pamphlet form both in English and German. Hav- 
ing had a good many letters to the same effect, I 
went at once to the Journal office here, and set 
them to work to print me in English fifty dollars 
worth of my last speech at Springfield, July 17th, 
that appearing, by what I hear, to be the most 

* William H. Bissell, Republican Governor of Illinois. 



To Norman B. Judd 93 

"taking" speech I have made. For that sum they 
will furnish about 7000 ; they will, at the same time, 
print some more, on their account, and keep the 
type standing for a while. I also wrote to Judd 
yesterday to get the same speech done up there in 
German. When I hear from him I will write you 
again. 

Some things are passing strange. Wednesday 
morning Douglas' paper here, the "Register," 
went out crowing over the defeat of Blair at St. 
Louis, and Blair's paper, the "Missouri Demo- 
crat," comes back the next day puffing and en- 
couraging Douglas ! 

Please write me on receipt of this and let me 
know if you have any news from Madison. Every 
place seems to be coming up to my expectations 
except Madison. 

Your friend as ever, 

A. Lincoln 

To Norman B. Judd ^ 

ASHVILLE, Oct. 20, I858. 

Hon. N. B. Judd, 

My dear Sir : — I now have a high degree of con- 
fidence that we shall succeed, if we are not over 

* Chairman of the Illinois delegation in the Republican Con- 
I'ention of i860; Minister to Prussia, 1861-65; ^^^ Congress- 
man, 1867-71. Original owned by Mr. Frederick M. Steele, 
Highland Park, III. 



94 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

run with fraudulent votes to a greater extent than 
usual. On alighting from the cars and walking the 
square at Naples on Monday, I met about fifteen 
Celtic gentlemen, with black carpet sacks in their 
hands. 

I learned that they had crossed over from the 
railroad in Brown county, but where they were 
going no one could tell. They dropped in about the 
doggeries, and were still hanging about when I left. 
At Brown County yesterday, I was told that about 
four hundred of the same sort were to be brought 
into Schuyler, before the election to work on some 
new railroad, but on reaching here I find Bagly 
thinks that is not so. What I most dread is that 
they will introduce into the doubtful districts num- 
bers of men who are legal voters in all respects 
except residence and who will swear to residence 
and thus put it beyond our power to exclude them. 
They can and I fear will swear falsely on that point, 
because they know it is next to impossible to con- 
vict them of perjury upon it. 

Now the great reassuring fact of the campaign, 
is finding a way to head this thing ofi^. Can it be 
done at all } 

I have a bare suggestion. When there is a known 
body of these voters, could not a true man, of the 
*' detective'' class, be introduced among them in dis- 
guise, who could, at the nick of time, control their 
votes ? Think this over. It would be a great thing. 



To Gen. Eleazar A. Paine 95 

when this trick is attempted upon us, to have the 
saddle come up on the other horse. 

I have talked, more fully than I can write, to 
Mr. Scripps, and he will talk to you. 

If we can head off the fraudulent votes we shall 
carry the day. 

Yours as ever, 

A. Lincoln. 

To John Moses 

Blandonville, Oct. 24, 1858. 
Hon John Moses 

My Dear Sir : Throw on all your weight. Some 
things I have heard make me think your case is 
not desperate as you thought when I was in Win- 
chester. Put in your best licks. 
Yours in haste 

A. Lincoln. 

To Gen. Eleazar A. Paine ^ 

Springfield, Nov. 19, 1858. 

Gen. Eleazar A. Paine. 

Dear Sir: . . .Well, the election is over; and, in 
the main point, we are beaten. Still my view is 
that the fight must go on. Let no one falter. The 

^ A lawyer of Monmouth, 111. This letter probably enclosed 
one from Dr. A. G. Henry to Lincoln. See letter to Henry in 
Works, Nicolay and Hay, 1894, i, 521, and same, Tandy's ed., 
1905, V, 94. 



96 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

question Is not half settled. New splits and divi- 
sions will soon be upon our adversaries, and we shall 
fuse again. 

Yours as ever 

A. Lincoln 

To Dr. B. Clarke Lundy ^ 

Springfield, Nov. 26, 1858. 

Dr. B. C. Lundy: 

My dear Sir: Your kind letter with enclosure 
is received, and for which I thank you. It being 
my own judgement that the fight must go on, it 
affords me great pleasure to learn that our friends 
are nowhere dispirited. 

There will be another "blow up" in the democ- 
racy. Douglas managed to be supported both as 
the best instrument to break down, and to up-hold 
the slave power. No ingenuity can keep this de- 
ception — this double position — up a great while. 
Yours very truly, 

A. Lincoln. 

To Lyman Trumbull 

Springfield, Dec. 11, 1858. 

Hon. L. Trumbull. 

My dear Sir: Your letter of the 7th enclosing 
one from Mr. Underwood is received. I have not 

* Copied from a facsimile. 




^3 '\^ "^ r 



To Lyman Trumbull 97 

the slightest thought of being a candidate for Con- 
gress in this District. I am not spoken of in the 
connection ; and I can scarcely conceive what has 
misled Mr. Underwood in regard to the matter. 

As to what we shall do, the Republicans are a 
little divided. The Danites ^ say if we will stand 
out of the way, they will run a man, and divide 
the democratic forces with the Douglasites; and 
some of our friends are in favor of this course. 
Others think such a course would demoralize us, 
and hurt us in the future; and they, of course, 
are in favor of running a man of our own at all 
events. This latter view will probably prevail. 

Since you left, Douglas has gone South, making 
characteristic speeches, and seeking to reinstate 
himself in that section. The majority of the demo- 
cratic politicians of the nation mean to kill him; 
but I doubt whether they will adopt the aptest 
way to do it. Their true way is to present him with 
no new test, let him into the Charleston conven- 
tion, and then outvote him, and nominate an- 
other. In that case, he will have no pretext for 
bolting the nomination, and will be as powerless 
as they can wish. On the other hand, if they 
push a Slave Code upon him, as a test, he will 
bolt at once, turn upon us, as in the case of Le- 
compton, and claim that all Northern men shall 
make common cause in electing him President as 

* The anti-Douglas faction of Administration Democrats. 



98 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

the best means of breaking down this Slave power. 
In that case, the democratic party go into a mi- 
nority inevitably; and the struggle in the whole 
North will be, as it was in Illinois last summer 
and fall, whether the Republican party can main- 
tain its identity, or be broken up to form the tail 
of Douglas's new kite. Some of our great Repub- 
lican doctors will then have a splendid chance 
to swallow the pills they so eagerly prescribed for 
us last spring. Still I hope they will not swallow 
them; and although I do not feel that I owe the 
said doctors much, I will help them, to the best of 
my ability, to reject the said pills. The truth is, 
the Republican principle can in no wise live with 
Douglas ; and it is arrant folly now, as it was last 
spring, to waste time, and scatter labor already 
performed, in dallying with him. 

Your friend as ever, 

A. Lincoln. 



To Lyman Trumbull ^ 

Springfield, Jany 29. 1859 

Hon: L. Trumbull 

Dear Sir: I have just received your late speech, in 
pamphlet form, sent me by yourself. I had seen, 
and read it, before, in a newspaper; and I really 
think it is a capital one. 

* See note on p. 66. 



To Mark W. Delahay 99 

When you can find leisure, write me your present 
impressions of Douglas' movements. Our friends 
here from different parts of the State, in and out 
of the Legislature, are united, resolute, and deter- 
mined; and I think it is almost certain that we 
shall be far better organized for i860 than ever 
before. 

We shall get no just apportionment ; and the best 
we can do, (if we can even do that) is to prevent 
one being made worse than the present. 
Yours as ever 

A. Lincoln. 



To Mark W. Delahay ^ 

Springfield, Ills. Feb. i, 1859. 

M. W. Delahay, Esq. 

My dear Sir: Yours of the 22nd of January is 
received. I do expect to visit Council Bluffs 
some time between this and next summer; and 
I should be pleased if I could arrange it so as to 
meet a Republican mass convention at your city. 
Until the Legislature shall adjourn, no one can 
tell what will be the time of holding court in any 
county — a thing I must keep my eye on this year, 
as I lost pretty nearly all of the last. When I can 
speak more definitely I will write again. Let me 
say now, however, that I think the later in May the 

* Original owned by Mr. Jesse W. Weik. 



100 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

better, unless you could defer until the last half of 
June, which would be the very best for me. I am 
obliged to be here the first half of June. 
Yours, very truly, 

A. Lincoln. 



. To Lyman Trumbull ^ 

Springfield, Feb. 3. 1859 

Hon. L. Trumbull 

My dear Sir: Yours of the 29th is received. 
The article ^ mentioned by you, prepared for the 
"Chicago Journal," I have not seen; nor do I wish 
to see it, though I heard of it a month, or more, 
ago. Any effort to put enmity between you and 
me, is as idle as the wind. I do not for a moment 
doubt that you, Judd, Cook, Palmer, and the 
Republicans generally, coming from the old Dem- 
ocratic ranks, were as sincerely anxious for my 
success in the late contest, as I myself, and the 
old Whig Republicans were. And I beg to assure 
you, beyond all possible cavil, that you can 
scarcely be more anxious to be sustained two years 

^ See note on p. 66. 

^ This was " an article said to have been prepared by Col. John 
Wentworth . . . the object of which evidently is to stir up bad 
feeling between Republicans who were formerly Whigs and those 
who were Democrats, and more especially to create prejudice 
against myself [Trumbull] and the Democratic portion of the 
party." The article had been refused publication but had been 
circulated privately. -- 



To P. H. Watson loi 

hence than I am that you shall be so sustained. I 
can not conceive it possible for me to be a rival of 
yours, or to take sides against you in favor of any 
rival. Nor do I think there is much danger of the 
old Democratic and Whig elements of our party 
breaking into opposing factions. They certainly 
shall not, if I can prevent it. 

I do not perceive that there is any feeling here 
about Cuba; and sol think, you can safely venture 
to act upon your own judgment upon any phase 
of it which may be presented. 

The H. R. passed an apportionment bill yester- 
day — slightly better for [us] than the present in 
the Senate districts; but perfectly outrageous in 
the H. R. districts. It can be defeated without 
any revolutionary movement, unless the session 
be prolonged. 

Yours as ever 

A. Lincoln 

To P. H. Watson ^ 

Chicago, March 2, 1859. 

P. H. Watson, Esq., 

My dear Sir : At last I am here to give some 
attention to the suit of Haines and Haines vs. 
Talcott and others. I write chiefly now to get up 
a correspondence with you by which, if possible, 

* Original owned by Mr. J. L. Smith, Ashtabula, Ohio. 



102 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

the labor may be lightened, and the time shortened, 
in getting the case ready for trial. I have looked 
over your answer, and filed a Replication. By the 
Answer you lay a foundation to take, and, I sup- 
pose, intend to take a great deal of proof, all which 
must be by depositions. We will have to take some 
on our part to begin with, besides rebutting yours 
as well as we may be able. In all this it is desirable 
that we agree upon times and places, without the 
labor and delay of formal notices. 

Besides this, it occurs to me that we might man- 
age to get the opinion of the Court on our branch 
of the law, even if that be for you, it would save 
all the labor as to the other. I mean for us, with 
the consent of the Court, to first make the question 
of infringement, if our right be as it apparently is, 
on the face of the patent, have you infringed it ? If 
this be decided for you, it is an end of the case. If 
for us, we can then enter upon the larger and more 
laborious plan of trying whether our apparent right 
is or is not a real one — whether it is substantially 
the same as are now on older things. 

Consider this and write me, at Springfield, as 
soon as you conveniently can. Make any sugges- 
tions of your own with the same frankness as I 
have done. 

Yours truly, 

A. Lincoln. 



To Mark W, Delahay 103 

To Haden Keeling ^ 

Springfield, A/Tarch 3, 1859. 
Haden Keeling, Esq. 

Dear Sir: Yours of Feb. 28th 1859 is received. 
I do not think there is the least use of doing any 
more with the law suit. I not only do not think 
you are sure to gain it, but I do think you are sure 
to lose it. Therefore the sooner it ends the better. 
Yours truly, 

A. Lincoln. 

To Mark W. Delahay ^ 

Springfield, March 4, 1859. 
M. W. Delahay, Esq. 

My dear Sir: — Your second letter in relation 
to my being with you at your Republican conven- 
tion was duly received. It is not at hand just now, 
but I have the impression from it that the conven- 
tion was to be at Leavenworth; but day before 
yesterday a friend handed me a letter from Judge 
M. F. Conway in which he also expresses a wish for 
me to come, and he fixes the place at Ossawatomie. 
This I believe is off of the river, and will require 
more time and labor to get to it. It will push 
me hard to get there without injury to my own 

* Original owned by Mr. Jesse W. Weik. 
2 Printed in fFritings, Lapsley ed., v, 22. Original in the pos- 
session of the Illinois State Historical Society. 



104 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

business ; but I shall try to do it, though I am not 
yet quite certain I shall succeed. 

I should like to know before coming, that while 
some of you wish me to come, there may not be 
others who would quite as lief I would stay away. 
Write me again. 

Yours as ever 

A. Lincoln 

To Thomas J. Pickett ^ 

Springfield, March 5, 1859. 
T. J. Pickett, Esq. 

My Dear Sir : Yours of the 2nd inst. inviting me 
to deliver my lecture on "Inventions" in Rock 
Island, is at hand and I regret to be unable, from 
press of business to comply therewith. 

In regard to the other matter you speak of, I 
beg that you will not give it a further mention. 
Seriously, I do not think I am fit for the Presi- 
dency.^ Very truly, 

Your Obt servt 

A. Lincoln 

^ A newspaper editor of Rock Island, 111. During the War 
he was a quartermaster's agent there. See letter of Apr, 20, 
1863, to C. Truesdale in Works, Nicolay and Hay, 1894, 11, 326, 
and same, Tandy's ed., 1905, viii, 251. Transcript furnished by 
Mr. Pickett to Mr. Herndon, Nov. 29, 1866. 

* Mr. Pickett wrote again urging Lincoln to run for the 
Presidency, and Lincoln replied in the same strain, Apr. 16, 
1859. See JVorks, Nicolay and Hay, 1894, i, 533, and same, 
Tandy's ed., 1905, v, 127. 



To William A. Ross 105 

To P. H. Watson 

P. H. Watson, Esq., 

My dear Sir: Reaching here the 14th, I found 
yours of the 7th. I have not heard from Haines 
for some time, and until I do hear from him I can 
say nothing definite about taking evidence. When 
I hear from him I will write you. 

Yours truly, A. Lincoln. 

To William A. Ross 

Lincoln, Logan Co., Ills. 
March 26, 1859. 

Wm. a. Ross, Esq: 

My dear Sir : Yours of the i8th was received a 
week ago. I would really be pleased with a publi- 
cation substantially as you propose. But I would 
suggest a few variations from your plan. I would 
not include the Republican platform; because that 
would give the work a one-sided party cast, unless 
the democratic platform is also included. 

I would not take all the speeches from the Press- 
Tribune; but I would take mine from that paper; 
and those of Judge Douglas from the Chicago 
Times. This would represent each of us, as re- 
ported by his own friends, and thus be mutual, and 
fair. I would take the speeches alone ; rigidly ex- 
cluding all comments of the newspapers. I would 
include the correspondence between Judge Douglas 



io6 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

and myself which led to the joint discussions. I 
would call the thing "Illinois political canvass of 
1858"; and, as falling within the title, I would 
select and include half a dozen of the National 
Democratic speeches. Last autumn and winter I 
got up a scrap-book precisely on the plan I have 
stated. The parts stand in the order following — 

My speech at Springfield, at the Republican 
convention, June 16, 1858. 

Douglas' speech at Chicago, July 9, 1858 

My speech at Chicago July 10, 1858. 

Douglas' speech at Bloomington July 16, 1858 

Douglas' speech at Springfield, July 17, 1858 

My speech at Springfield July 17, 1858. 

The correspondence which led to the joint dis- 
cussions. 

The joint discussions, in the order in which they 
occurred. 

The National Democratic speeches, to come in 
after the others, in the order among themselves 
in which they were delivered. 

In my own speeches I have corrected only a few 
small typographical errors. The other speeches 
I have not touched; but merely pasted them in 
from the papers in which they were reported. 

Judge Douglas would have the right to correct 
typographical errors in his, if he desires; but I 
think the necessity, in his case, would be less than 
in mine ; because he had two hired reporters travel- 



To Gustave Koerner 107 

ling with him, and probably revised their manu- 
scripts before they went to press; while I had 
no reporter of my own, but depended on a very 
excellent one sent by the Press-Tribune ; but who 
never wanted to show me his notes or manu- 
scripts; so that the first I saw of my speeches 
after delivering them, was in the Press-Tribune 
precisely as they now stand. 

My scrap book would be the best thing to print 
from ; still, as it cost me a good deal of labor to get 
it up, and as I am very desirous to preserve the 
substance of it permanently, I would not let it go 
out of my control. If an arrangement could be made 
to print it in Springfield, under my own supervision, 
I would allow the scrap-book to be used, and would 
claim no share in any profit that could be made 
out of the publication. 

I am here now, attending court ; and seize a mo- 
ment to answer yours, which I ought to have done 
sooner. Let me hear from you again. 
Yours with respects 

A. Lincoln 



To Gustave Koerner 

Springfield, April ii, 1859. 

Hon. G. Koerner 

My dear sir : Reaching home last night, I found 
your letter of the 4th. The meeting of the Central 



io8 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

Committee was at Bloomington, and not here. I 
was there attending court, and, in common with 
several other outsiders, one [of whom was Judge 
Trumbull, was in conference with the Commit- 
tee, to some extent. Judd privately mentioned 
the subject of which you write, to me, and requested 
me to prepare a resolution, which I did. When I 
brought in the resolution and read it to the com- 
mittee, and others present, in an informal way. 
Judge Trumbull suggested that it would be better 
to select some act of our adversaries, rather than 
of our friends, upon which to base a protest against 
any distinction between native and naturalized 
citizens, as to the right of suffrage. This led to a 
little parley, I was called from the room, the thing 
passed from my mind, and I do not now know 
whether anything was done about it by the Com- 
mittee. Judge Trumbull will be in Belleville when 
this reaches you, and he probably can tell you all 
about it. Whether anything was done or not, some- 
thing must be, the next time the Committee meets, 
which I presume will be before long. 

I am right glad the Committee put in operation 
our plan of organization which we started here last 
winter. They appointed Mr. Fell of Bloomington 
as Secretary. 

Yours as ever 

A. Lincoln 



To Salmon P. Chase 109 

To Salmon P. Chase ^ 

Springfield, III., 
April 30*^ 1859. 

Hon. S. p. Chase, 

Dear Sir : Reaching home yesterday I found your 
kind note of the 14^^, informing me that you have 
given Mr. Whitney the appointment he desired; 
and also mentioning the present encouraging as- 
pects of the RepubUcan cause, and our lUinois 
canvass of last year. 

I thank you for the appointment ; allow me also 
to thank you as being one of the very few distin- 
guished men whose sympathy we thought we had 
reason to expect. 

Of course I would have preferred success; but 
failing in that, I have no regrets for having 
rejected all advice to the contrary, and resolutely 
made the struggle. Had we thrown ourselves into 
the arms of Douglas as re-electing him by our votes 
would have done, the Republican cause would 
have been annihilated in Illinois, and, as I think, 
demoralized and prostrated everywhere for years, 
if not forever. As it is, in the language of Benton, 
*we are clean,' and the Republican star gradually 
rises higher everywhere. 

Yours truly, A. Lincoln. 

1 Original in the archives of the Pennsylvania Historical So- 
ciety. Printed in H. C. Whitney's Lije of Lincoln, New York, 
1008. 



no Letters of Abraham Lincoln 
To Charles Ambos ^ 

Spgfield Ills June 21, 1859. 

Charles Ambos, Esq., 

Dear Sir : I have had two or three letters from 
you recently in regard to the claim of your Com- 
pany against T. A. Barret. Mr. Barret has been 
telling me for the month past that there is some 
money at Christian Co. of the claim assigned to 
your Company as security which can be had when 
he and I can go there together to release a portion 
of the land involved; but I have been unable to 
get off at any time when I could [get] Barret to 
go with me. 

I now think I will get off in a few days. It is so 
very much better to get the debt reduced by actual 
payments than to push forward in sole reliance 
upon the law, that I am loth to lose any oppor- 
tunity of this sort. 

I would now very gladly surrender the charge of 
the case to any one you would designate, without 
charging anything for the much trouble I have 
already had. 

Yours &c 

A. Lincoln 

* See letters of July 27, 1859, to Samuel Galloway in Works, 
Nicolay and Hay, 1894, i, 536, and same, Tandy's ed., 1905, v, 
134. 



To Nathan Sargent iii 

To Nathan Sargent ^ 

Springfield, III., 
June 23, 1859. 

Hon. Nathan Sargent. 

My dear Sir: Your very acceptable letter of the 
13^^ was duly received. Of course I would be 
pleased to see all the elements of opposition united 
for the approaching contest of i860; but I confess 
I have not much hope of seeing it. You state a 
platform for such union in these words ''Opposi- 
tion to the opening of the Slave-trade ; and eternal 
hostility to the rotten democracy.'^ You add, by 
way of comment " I say, if the republicans would 
be content with this, there will be no obstacle to 
a union of the oppositiofi. But this should be dis- 
tinctly understood, before Southern men are asked 
to join them in a National convention." Well, 
I say such a platform, unanimously adopted 
by a National convention, with two of the best 
men living placed upon it as candidates, would 
probably carry Maryland, and would certainly 
not carr}^ a single other State. It would gain 
nothing in the South, and lose ever}^thing in 
the North. Mr. Goggin has just been beaten in 

^ Judge Sargent had been a prominent member of the Whig 
Party, to which he had given its name. He was afterwards 
Commissioner of Customs under Lincoln, Johnson, and Grant. 
Reprinted from Harper's Weekly, Feb. 13, 1909, where it was 
printed in an article by Henry Oldys. 



112 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

Virginia on just such a platform. Last year the 
Republicans of Illinois cast 125,000 votes; on such 
a platform as yours they can not cast as many 
as 50,000. You could not help perceiving this, if 
you would but reflect that the republican party 
is utterly powerless everywhere, if it will, by any 
means, drive from it all those who came to it from 
the democracy for the sole object of preventing 
the spread and nationalization of slavery. When- 
ever this object is waived by the organization, they 
will drop the organization; and the organization 
itself will dissolve into thin air. Your platform 
proposes to allow the spread and nationalization of 
slavery to proceed without let or hindrance, save 
only that it shall not receive supplies directly from 
Africa. Surely you do not seriously believe the 
Republicans can come to any such terms. 

From the passage of the Nebraska bill up to date, 
the Southern opposition have constantly sought 
to gain an advantage over the rotten democracy, 
by running ahead of them in extreme opposition 
to, and vilification and misrepresentation of black 
republicans. It will be a good deal, if we fail to 
remember this in malice, (as I hope we shall fail to 
remember it ;) but it is altogether too much to ask 
us to try to stand with them on the platform which 
has proved altogether insuflJicient to sustain them 
alone. If the rotten democracy shall be beaten in 
i860, it has to be done by the North; no human 



To Editor of Central Transcript 113 

invention can deprive them of the South. I do 
not deny that there are as good men in the South 
as the North; and I guess we will elect one of 
them if he will allow us to do so on Republican 
ground. I think there can be no other ground of 
union. For my single self I would be willing to 
risk some Southern man without a platform; but 
I am satisfied that is not the case with the Repub- 
lican party generally. 

Yours very truly 

A. Lincoln 



To THE Editor of the Central Transcript ^ 

Springfield, July 3, 1859. 

Editor of the Central Transcript. 

Dear Sir: Your paper of the ist which I presume 
you sent me is received. Put me on your sub- 
scription list, and I will pay at fall court. 

I cut a slip from the number and return it with 
a word of comment. I shall heartily support for 
Governor whoever shall be nominated by a Re- 
publican state convention ; and no one more heart- 
ily than any one of the five you name. But is not 
the fling you make at our Northern brethren both 
unjust to them, and dangerous to our cause? You 
open by saying, "A strong controversy is going 
on between the Chicago papers as to who shall 

1 Found in Mr. Herndon's papers. 



114 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

be the next Republican nominee for Governor/* 
I was unaware of this. I have not seen in any Chi- 
cago paper, a man named or pointed to, whom such 
paper do declare for as its candidate for Governor. 
Have you? Again, ought you to say, as you do, 
that "the matter will be entirely controlled by 
the Central and Southern portions of the state".? 
Surely, on reflection, you will agree that the matter 
must be controlled, in due proportion, by all parts 
of the state. Again, you say, "The defeat of Mr. 
Lincoln may be attributed to the course pursued 
by these Northerners in putting none but the 
most ultra men on the track, as candidates for the 
more important state and Federal offices &c." 
This statement is indeed strange. The Republi- 
can party, since its organization in Illinois, has 
gone through two general elections — in 1856 
and 1858; and "these Northerners" have not 
even had a single candidate for a state office, or 
a Federal office commensurate with the state, 
either residing within their section, or hold- 
ing their supposed ultra views. In 1856 they put 
on the track, Bissell of Belleville for Governor, 
Hatch of Pike Co. for secretary of state, Dubois, 
of Lawrence Co. for Auditor, Miller of Blooming- 
ton for Treasurer, etc. . . . 

Another very marked fact is that " these North- 
erners," in the two past elections, gave nearly all 
the votes that carried them ; and that the next elec- 



To D. J. Powers 115 

tion will be lost unless "these Northerners" do the 
same thing again. Your fling about men entangled 
with the "Matteson Robbery" as you express it, — 
and were indicted for stealing niggers and mail 
bags, I think is unjust and impolitic. Why manu- 
facture slang to be used against us by our enemies .? 
The world knows who are alluded to by the men- 
tion of stealing niggers and mail bags. . . . Have 
candidates by agreement, and not by force, help 
one another instead of trying to hurt one another. 
I do not write this for publication, and would not 
have written at all, had I expected a chance to see 
and talk with you soon. 

Yours very truly, A. Lincoln. 

To D. J. Powers ^ 

Springfield, Ills. Aug. i8, 1859. 
D. J. Powers, Esq., 

Dear Sir : — Reaching home after an absence [of] 
nine days I have yours of the 12th. 

I have also received that of July 27; and, to be 
plain, I dislike to decline the honor you tendered 
me. Two difficulties were in the way — first, I 
could not well spare the time from the Courts ; and 
secondly, I have no address of the sort prepared, 
and could scarcely spare the time to prepare 
one ; and I was waiting, before answering you, to 

^ Original owned by Mr. Frederick M. Steele, Highland Park, 
III. 



ii6 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

determine whether the difficuhies could be sur- 
mounted. I will write you definitely on the ist day 
of September, if you can safely delay so long. 
Yours very truly, 

A. Lincoln 

To Peter Zinn ^ 

Springfield, Ills., Sept. 6, 1859. 

Peter Zinn, Esq. 

Dear Sir: Yours of the 2nd in relation to my ap- 
pearing at Cincinnati in behalf of the Opposition is 
received. I already had a similar letter from Mr. 
W. J. Bascom, Secretary of the Republican State 
Central Committee at Columbus, which I answer 
to-day. You are in correspondence with him, and 
will learn all from him. I shall try to speak at 
Columbus and Cincinnati, but cannot do more. 
Yours truly, 

A. Lincoln. 

To Mark W. Delahay ^ 

Springfield, October 17, 1859. 

Dear Delahay : Your letter requesting me to drop 
a line in your favor to Gen. Lane was duly received. 
I have thought it over, and concluded it is not the 

* Copy furnished by Mr. Judd Stewart. 

' This letter and the following are from Horace White's Life 
of Lyman Trumbull, Boston, 1913, p. loi. Originals in the col- 
lection of Mr. Jesse W. Weik. 



To Mark W. Delahay 117 

best way. Any open attempt on my part would 
injure you; and if the object merely be to assure 
Gen. Lane of my friendship for you, show him the 
letter herewith enclosed. I never saw him, or cor- 
responded with him ; so that a letter directly from 
me to him, would run a great hazard of doing harm 
to both you and m^e. 

As to the pecuniary matter, about which you 
formerly wrote me, I again appealed to our friend 
Turner by letter, but he never answered. I can but 
repeat to you that I am so pressed myself, as to be 
unable to assist you, unless I could get it from him. 

Yours as ever, 
(Enclosure) A. Lincoln. 

To Mark W. Delahay ^ 

Springfield, October 17, 1859. 

M. W. Delahay, Esq., 

My Dear Sir : I hear your name mentioned for 
one of the seats in the U.S. Senate from your new 
state. I certainly would be gratified with your suc- 
cess; and if there was any proper way for me to 
give you a lift, I would certainly do it. But, as it is, 
I can only wish you well. It would be improper for 
me to interfere ; and if I were to attempt it, it would 
do you harm. 

Your friend, as ever, A. Lincoln 

P.S. Is not the election news glorious ^ 
^ Enclosed with the preceding letter. 



ii8 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

To William Dungy ^ 

Springfield, November 2, 1859. 

Wm. Dungy, Esq.: 

Dear Sir: — Yours of October 27 is received. 
When a mortgage is given to secure two notes, and 
one of the notes is sold and assigned, if the mort- 
gaged premises are only sufficient to pay one note, 
the one assigned will take it all. Also, an execution, 
from a judgement on the assigned note, may take 
it all; it being the same thing in substance. There 
is redemption on execution sales from the United 
States Court just as from any other Court. 

You did not mention the name of plaintiff or 
defendant in the suit, and so I can tell nothing 
about it as to sales, bids, etc. Write again, 
Yours, etc., 

A. Lincoln. 



To P. QuiNN Harrison^ 

Springfield, Nov. 3, 1859. 
P. QuiNN Harrison, 

Dear Sir: I have no reason to doubt that our 
friends are doing the best they can about the 
election. 

^ First printed in Joseph H. Barrett's Abraham Lincoln and 
his Presidency, i, 208; reprinted in Writings, Lapsley ed., v, II3. 
* Original owned by Mr. Jesse W. Weik. 



To Lyman Trumbull 119 

Still, you can do some more if you will. A young 
man before the enemy has learned to watch him, 
can do more than any other. Pitch in and try. 
Palmer is good and true, and deserves the best vote 
we can give him. If you can make your precinct 20 
votes better than it was last we probably shall 
redeem the county. Try. 

Yours Truly, 

A. Lincoln 

To Jesse A. Pickerel ^ 

Springfield, Nov. 3, 1859. 

Dear Jesse : — I am never done asking for favors. 
I shall be much obliged if you and William and 
your sons will do what you can to get as good a 
vote for Palmer as possible. He is a good and true 
man ; and we possibly may elect him. Get all our 
voters out you can. 

Yours as ever, 

A. Lincoln. 

To Lyman Trumbull ^ 

Springfield, Nov. 28, 1859 
Hon. L. Trumbull. 

My dear Sir: Yours of the 23rd is received. I 
agree with you entirely about the contemplated 

* Original owned by Mr. Jesse W. Weik. 
' See note on p. 66. 



120 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

election of Forney.^ Nothing could be more short- 
sighted than to place so strong a man as Forney in 
position to keep Douglas on foot. I know nothing 
of Forney personally; but I would put no man in 
position to help our enemies in the point of our 
hardest strain. 

There is nothing new here. I have written 
merely to give my view about this Forney business. 
Yours as ever 

A. Lincoln 



To John J. Crittenden ^ 

December 22, 1859. 
Address^ Springfield, Illinois. 
Hon. J. J. Crittenden, 
U.S. Senate. 
My Dear Sir: I should not care to be a candidate 
of a party having as its only platform "The Con- 
stitution, the Union and the enforcement of the 
laws." "The Constitution," as we understand it^ 
has been the shibboleth of every party or malcon- 

^ John W. Forney strenuously supported Douglas in his oppo- 
sition to the Kansas policy of President Buchanan, was clerk of 
the National House of Representatives in 185 1-55, and again 
in 1859. He became an ardent Republican and was Secretary of 
the Senate in 1861-68. 

^ United States Senator from Kentucky. From a pamphlet en- 
titled Some Lincoln Correspondence with Southern Leaders before 
the Outbreak of the Civil PVar, from the Collection of Judd Stew- 
art, 1909. The letter was there printed from a copy. 



To John J. Crittenden 121 

tent from the Hartford Convention that wanted to 
secede from slave territory and the "Blue Light" 
burners who were in British sympathy in 181 2, to 
John C. Calhoun and South Carolina Nullifica- 
tion. 

The Union, we intend to keep, and loyal states 
will not let disloyal ones break it. Its constitution 
and laws made in pursuance thereof must and shall 
remain, "the supreme law of the land." The en- 
forcement of what laws f If they are those which 
give the use of jails & domestic police for masters 
seeking "fugitives from labor" that means war in 
the North. No law is stronger than is the public 
sentiment where it is to be enforced. Free speech 
and discussion and immunity from whip & tar 
and feathers, seem implied by the guarantee to 
each state of "a republican form of government." 
Try Henry Clay's "gradual emancipation" scheme 
now in Kentucky, or to circulate W. L. Garrison's 
Liberator where most men are salivated by the 
excessive use of the Charleston Mercury. Father 
told a story of a man in your parts required to give 
a warrantee bill of sale with a horse. He wrote, " I 
warrant him sound in skin and skeleton and with- 
out faults or faculties." That is more than I can 
say of an unmeaning platform. Compromises of 
principles break of their own weight. 
Yours very respectfully 

A. Lincoln 



122 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

To Lyman Trumbull ^ 

Springfield, Dec. 25, 1859 
Hon. Lyman Trumbull 

Dear Sir: About the 15th by direction of Mr. 
Judd, I sent a letter and inclosures to him, ad- 
dressed to your care; and I have not yet learned 
whether he received it. 

I have carefully read your speech; and I judge 
that, by the interruptions, it came out a much bet- 
ter speech than you expected to make when you 
began. It really is an excellent one, many of the 
points being most admirably made. 

I was in the inside of the Post-Office last evening 
when a mail came bringing a considerable number 
of your documents ; and the Post-Master said to 
me "These will be put in the boxes, and half will 
never be called for. If Trumbull would send them 
to me I would distribute a hundred to where he will 
get ten distributed this way." 

I said, "Shall I write this to Trumbull?" He re- 
plied, "If you choose you may." I believe he was 
sincere; but you will judge of that for yourself. 
Yours as ever 

A. Lincoln 

^ See note on p. 66. 



To Alexander H. Stephens 123 

To Fernando Jones 

Springfield Jan. 15, i860. 
Fernando Jones, Esq. 

My dear Sir : Yours of the 10^^ was received two 
or three days ago ; and being much engaged, I have 
postponed attending to it until now. 

Our Republican friend, J. W. FelV of Bloom- 
ington, Illinois, can furnish you the material for 
a brief sketch of my history, if it be desired. 

I shall be happy to receive a letter from you at 
any time. 

Yours truly, 

A. Lincoln 

To Alexander H. Stephens ^ 

Springfield, Illinois, 19 January, i860. 
Duplicated for Senator Jno. J. Crittenden 

Honorable A. H. Stephens 

Dear Sir: Your letter and one from Hon. J. J. 
Crittenden, reached me at the same time. He 
wants a new party on the platform of *'The Union, 
the constitution and the enforcement of the Laws" 

^ Mr. Fell was one of the first to urge Lincoln to seek the Re- 
publican nomination for President. 

* From a pamphlet entitled Some Lincoln Correspondence with 
Southern Leaders before the Outbreak of the Civil War, from the 
Collection of Judd Stewart, 1909. The letter was there printed 
from a copy certified as correct by Mr. Stephens. 



124 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

■ — not construed. You from your retirement at 
Liberty Hall complain of the bad faith of many in 
the free states who refuse to return fugitives from 
labor, as agreed in the compromise of 1850, 1854: 
but I infer that you agree with Judge Douglas that 
the territories are to be left to "form and regulate 
their own domestic institutions subject only to the 
Constitution of the United States." I remember 
the letter of the Whigs in Congress in 1852 which 
defeated Gen'l Winfield Scott on the ground that 
he did not present your view of States' rights. 
Also that your letter destroyed the Whig party and 
it is said that you and Toombs voted for Webster 
after he was dead. You are still "harping" on "my 
daughter" and you supported Zach Taylor as a 
sound Kentuckian. If I understand you, here are 
two constructions : Crittenden being willing for the 
Henry Clay gradual emancipation, I think. The 
rights of local self-government as defined by 
Webster, also including state determination of 
citizenship, are clearly in the Constitution. When 
we were both Members of the Young-Indian Club 
in Washington you then argued for paramount 
state Sovereignty going very nearly to the extreme 
of state nullification of Federal laws with John C. 
Calhoun: and of secession at will with Robert 
Toombs. The Colonies were subject up to July 4, 
1776, and had no recognized independence until 
they had won it in 1783: but the only time they 



To Alexander H. Stephens 125 

ever had the shadows of separate sovereignty was 
in the two years before they were compelled to 
the articles of Confederation July 9, 1778. They 
fought England for seven years for the right to 
club together but when were they independent of 
each other ? Let me say right here that only unani- 
mous consent of all of the states can dissolve this 
Union. We will not secede and you shall not. Let 
me show you what I think of the reserved rights of 
the states as declared in the articles of Confedera- 
tion and in the Constitution and so called Jeffer- 
sonian amendments; suppose that I sold a farm 
here in Illinois with all and singular the rights, 
members and appurtenances to the same in any 
wise belonging or appertaining, signed, sealed and 
delivered : I have now sold my land. Will it at all 
change the contract if I go to the clerk's office and 
add a post script to the record ; that all rights not 
therein conveyed I reserve to myself and my chil- 
dren .? The colonies, by the Declaration of July 4, 
1776, did not get nationality, for they were leagued 
to fight for it. By the articles of Confederation of 
July 9, 1778, under stress and peril of failure with- 
out union, a government was created to which the 
states ceded certain powers of nationality, especially 
in the command of the army and navy, as yet sup- 
ported by the states. Geo. Washington was Com- 
mander in Chief and congress was advisory agent 
of the states, commending but not enacting laws 



126 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

for the thirteen, until empowered. This proved in- 
sufficient and the peril of failure was great as 
ever, at home and abroad. Alexander Hamilton 
and others of New York were first to urge that a 
government with no revenues, except state grants, 
could have no credit at home or abroad. Three 
years later Virginia led the states in urging con- 
cessions of power, and then by twelve states — 
Rhode Island objecting — was framed our original 
Constitution of 1787 fully three and a half years 
after the peace that sealed our United national 
Independence. The post-script erroneously all at- 
tributed to Thomas Jefferson, came in three in- 
stallments. The first ten (10) proposed in the first 
session of the Congress of the United States 25 th 
September 1789 were ratified by the constitutional 
number of states 15 December 1791, New Jersey 
20 November 1789 and Virginia 15 December 1791, 
eleven states only, Georgia and Connecticut dis- 
senting. The eleventh amendment, proposed 5 
March 1794, Third Congress, was then declared 
duly adopted by a President's message of 8 Jan- 
uary, 1798, eleven states consenting & finally 
all consenting. The twelfth amendment was pro- 
posed in congress 12 December 1803 and declared 
ratified through the secretary of state 25 Septem- 
ber 1804 by the constitutional quorum of states. 
The first ten articles are the Bill 0/ Rights and each 
set of amendments had a preface. The eleventh 



To Alexander H. Stephens 127 

limited the Federal Judiciary. The twelfth regu- 
lated general elections for President and Vice- 
President of the United States. Do any or all of 
these retract the fee-simple grant of great and per- 
manent powers to the Federal Government ? There 
are three great Departments : I, the President com- 
manding the Army and Navy and with a veto upon 
a plurality of Congress. II, the Congress coining 
all moneys ; collecting all imposts on imports, regu- 
lating all interstate as all external commerce ; mak- 
ing all subordinate Federal Judiciary as appointed 
of the President with power to have a ten mile 
square seat and to take grants or to buy for Forts, 
Dock yards and Arsenals ; having post offices and 
post roads under laws executed by the President, 
and to frame supreme constitutional laws and set 
up courts and Judges. Ill, The supreme court 
set as arbiter and expounder of the constitution and 
of all differences of states and with states or of 
them with the Federation; no loop hole left for 
nullification, and none for secession, — because 
the right of peaceable assembly and of petition 
and by article Fifth of the Constitution, the right 
of amendment, is the Constitutional substitute for 
revolution. Here is our Magna Carta not wrested 
by Barons from King John, but the free gift of 
states to the nation they create and in the very 
amendments harped upon by states rights men 
are proposed by the Federal congress and approved 



128 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

by Presidents, to make the liberties of the Republic 
of the West forever sure. All of the States' Rights 
which they wished to retain are now and forever 
retained in the Union, including slavery; and so I 
have sworn loyalty to this constitutional Union, 
and for it let me live or let me die. But you say 
that slavery is the corner stone of the south and if 
separated, would be that of a new Republic; God 
forbid. When a boy I went to New Orleans on a 
flat boat and there I saw slavery and slave mar- 
kets as I have never seen them in Kentucky, and I 
heard worse of the Red River plantations. I hoped 
and prayed that the gradual emancipation plan of 
Henry Clay or the Liberian colonization of John 
Q. Adams might lead to its extinction in the United 
States. Geo. Washington, the Massachusetts 
Adams, Presidents James Madison and Monroe, 
Benj. Franklin opposed its extension into the 
territories before I did. The ordinance of 1784, 
1787 for the North West territory ceded by Vir- 
ginia, was written by Thomas Jefferson and signed 
only by slave-holders and that prohibited forever 
slavery, or involuntary servitude not imposed for 
crime. Your grandfather. Captain Stephens, suf- 
fered at Valley Forge and bled at Brandywine 
for the principles of the men of 1 776-1 783. Your 
Uncle, Justice Grier of the Supreme Bench has 
recently expounded the Supreme Law as I hon- 
estly accept it. Senator Crittenden complains that 



To Gustave Koerner 129 

by the device of party conventions and nomina- 
tions of candidates for Presidents and Vice-Presi- 
dents the Federal plan of separate and unbiased 
Electoral Colleges is taken away and the popular 
feature of elections is restored to the people. I 
reckon they wanted it so. What are you agoing to 
do about it? To abolish conventions you must 
abolish candidates. In your Oxford College ora- 
tions, you say "I love the Union and revere its 
memories ; I rejoice in all its achievements in arts, 
in letters and in arms." If it is a good thing, why 
not just keep it and say no more about it ? 

I am not in favor of a party of Union, constitu- 
tion and law to suit Mr. Bell or Mr. Everett and 
be construed variously in as many sections as there 
are states. 

This is the longest letter I ever dictated or wrote. 
But this is to only you alone, not to the public. 
Your truly, 

A. Lincoln. 



To Gustave Koerner 

Springfield, Jan 20, i860. 

Hon. G. Koerner, 

My dear Sir: Yesterday the Judge decided the 
demurrer against us on all the points. On looking 
over your memorandum left with me, I find you 
desired me to have the case set for trial as late as 



130 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

I can. But really I find I have no power to set a 
time for the trial. The opposite party is not here, 
in person or by counsel, and the Judge, properly 
enough, refuses to make a stipulation for the absent 
party. He says he understands, however, that the 
case is not to come up before the 24th. 

I have telegraphed you to-day; but if this reaches 
you before you leave, you might see Jewett at St. 
Louis and make an arrangement. 
Yours truly, 

A. Lincoln 



To Abraham Jonas ^ 

Springfield, Feb. 4, i860 

Hon. a. Jonas. 

My dear Sir: Yours of the 3rd inquiring how you 
can get a copy of the debates now being published 
in Ohio is received. As you are one of my most 
valued friends, and have complimented me by the 
expression of a wish for the book, I propose doing 
myself the honor of presenting you with one, as 
soon as I can. By the arrangement our Ohio 
friends have made with the publishers, I am to have 
one hundred copies gratis. When I shall receive 
them I will send you one by express. I understand 
they will not be out before March and I probably 

^ An English Jew settled at Quincy, 111., and a political friend 
of Lincoln. See p. 241. 



To Henry E. Dummer 131 

shall be absent about that time, so that you must 
not be disappointed if you do not receive yours 
before about the middle of the month. 
Yours very truly, 

A. Lincoln 

To Henry E. Dummer 

February 8, i860. 

Dear Mr. Dummer : I have examined and consid- 
ered the general proposition in your letter accom- 
panying copy of contract in relation to Lard tubs, 
apparatus &c., and in my opinion the Messrs H. C. 
Gadsen and Co. will, as a general proposition, have 
a right to continue to use the Tubs, apparatus &c 
which they have. 

The reason why I say " as a general proposition " 
is that I fear the phraseology of the contract de- 
prives them of it. - 

The language of the contract is so explicit and 
so often repeated that the right to use "shall be 
until the expiration of patent" that I fear it will be 
held that by the contract they cannot have the 
benefit of the enterprise. 

Much might be said on the other side and I only 
mean to say that in my mind the question on the 
phraseology of the contract is doubtful and per- 
haps is worth trying. 

Yours as ever, A. Lincoln. 



132 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

To O. P. Hall and I (or J.) H. Fullininder 

Springfield Feb. 14, i860. 

Messrs. O. P. Hall & 

I OR J. H. Fullininder. 
Gentlemen: Your letter in which, among other 
things, you ask what I meant when I said this 
"Union could not stand half slave and half free"; 
and also what I meant when I said "a house 
divided against itself could not stand" is received 
and I very cheerfully answer it as plainly as I may 
be able. You misquote, to some material extent, 
what I did say, which induces me to think you have 
not very carefully read the speech in which the 
expressions occur which puzzle you to understand. 
For this reason and because the language I used 
is as plain as I can make it, I now quote at length 
the whole paragraph in which the expressions which 
puzzle you occur. It is as follows: "We are now far 
into the fifth year since a policy was initiated with 
the avowed object and confident promise of putting 
an end to slavery agitation. Under the operation 
of that policy that agitation has not only not 
ceased, but constantly augmented. I believe it will 
not cease until a crisis shall have been reached, and 
passed. A house divided against itself can not 
stand. I believe this government can not endure 
permanently, half slave, and half free. I do not ex- 
pect the Union to be dissolved : I do not expect the 



To Messrs. Hall and Fullininder 133 

house to fall; but I do expect it will cease to be 
divided. It will become all one thing, or all the 
other. Either the opponents of slavery will avert 
the further spread of it and place it where the 
public mind shall rest in the belief that it is in 
course of ultimate extinction; or its advocates will 
push it forward till it will become alike lawful in 
all the states, old as well as new, North as well as 
South." 

That is the whole paragraph ; and it puzzles me 
to make my meaning plainer. Look over it care- 
fully, and conclude I meant all I said, and did not 
mean any thing I did not say, and you will have 
my meaning. Douglas attacked me upon this, say- 
ing it was a declaration of war between the slave 
and the free states. You will perceive, I said no 
such thing, and I assure you I thought of no such 
thing. If I had said I believe the Government can- 
not last always half slave and half free, would you 
understand it any better than you do? Endure 
permanently and last always have exactly the same 
meaning. If you, or if you will state to me some 
meaning which you suppose I had, I can and will 
instantly tell you whether that was my meaning. 
Your very truly, 

A. Lincoln. 



134 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 



To Beers & Mansfield 

Springfield, Ills., 
March 14, i860 

Mess. Beers and Mansfield. 

Gentlemen: Your request to take a photographic 
likeness of me, while in your city, was duly re- 
ceived; but at a time when my arrangements were 
so made that I could not call upon you before 
leaving. I would have written sooner, but the 
matter passed out of my mind ; and is now recalled 
by the sight of your note. I beg you will believe me 
guilty of no intentional disrespect. 
Very Respectfully, 

A. Lincoln 



To Mark W. Delahay ^ 

Springfield, Ills. 
Mar. 16, i860. 

Dear Delahay: I have just returned from the 
East. Before leaving I received your letter of 
Feb. 6; and on my return I find those of the ij^^ 
and i(f^ with Gen'l Lane's note inclosed in one of 
them. I sincerely wish you could be elected one of 
the first Senators from Kansas; but how to help 
you I do not know. If it were permissible for me 

^ Original owned by Mr. Jesse W. Weik. An extract was 
published in Writings, Lapsley, v, 1 78, with name suppressed. 



To Mark W. Delahay 135 

to Interfere, I am not personally acquainted with a 
single member of your Legislature. If my known 
friendship for you could be of any advantage, that 
friendship was abundantly manifested by me last 
December while in Kansas. If any member had 
written me, as you say some have Trumbull, I 
would very readily answer him. I shall write 
Trumbull at this sitting. 

I understood, while in Kansas, that the State 
Legislature will not meet until the State is ad- 
mitted. Was that the right understanding? 

As to your kind wishes for myself, allow me to 
say I can not enter the ring on the money basis — 
first, because, in the main, it is wrong; and sec- 
ondly, I have not, and can not get, the money. I 
say, in the main, the use of money is wrong; but 
for certain objects, in a political contest, the use of 
some, is both right and indispensable. With me as 
with yourself, this long struggle has been one of 
great pecuniary loss. I now distinctly say this: If 
you shall be appointed a delegate to Chicago, I will 
furnish one hundred dollars to bear the expenses 
of the trip. 

Present my respects to Gen'l Lane; and say to 
him, I shall be pleased to hear from him at any 
time. 

Your friend, as ever, 

A. Lincoln 

P.S. I have not yet taken the newspaper slip to 



136 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

the Journal. I shall do that tomorrow, and then 
send you the paper as requested. 

A. L. 



To Lyman Trumbull ^ 

Springfield, Mar. 16, i860 

Hon: L. Trumbull 

My dear Sir: When I first saw by the despatches 
that Douglas had run from the Senate while you 
were speaking I did not quite understand it; but 
seeing by the report that you were cramming down 
his throat that infernal stereotyped He of his about 
"negro equality" the thing became plain. 

Another matter. Our friend Delahay wants to 
be one of the Senators from Kansas. Certainly it 
is not for outsiders to obtrude their interference. 
Delahay has suffered a great deal in our cause, and 
been very faithful to it, as I understand. He writes 
me that some of the members of the Kansas Legis- 
lature have written you in a way that your simple 
answer might help him. I wish you would consider 
whether you can not assist him that far, without 
impropriety. I know it is a delicate matter; and I 
do not wish to press you beyond your own judge- 
ment. 

Yours as ever 

A. Lincoln. 

* See note on p. 66. 



To Ward H. Lamon 137 

To Lyman Trumbull ^ 

Chicago, March 26, i860 

Hon: L. Trumbull 

My dear Sir: They are having a desperate strug- 
gle in Connecticut; ^ and it would both please, and 
help our friends there, if you could be with them in 
the last days of the fight. Having been there, I 
know they are proud of you as a son of their own 
soil, and would be moved to greater exertion by 
your presence among them. 

Can you not go? Telegraph them, and go right 
along. The fiendish attempt now being made upon 
Connecticut, must not be allowed to succeed. 
Yours as ever 

A. Lincoln 

To Ward H. Lamon 

Chicago, March 28, i860 

Mr. W. H. Lamon. 

My dear Sir: Yours about motions to quash the 
indictment was received yesterday. I think I had 
no authority but the statute when I wrote the in- 
dictment — in fact I remember but little about it. 
I think yet there is no necessity for setting out the 

* See note on p. 66. 

' After his speech at the Cooper Institute, February 27, i860, 
Lincoln spent several days in Connecticut. 



138 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

letter in haec verba. Our statute as I think releases 
the high degree of technical certainty formerly 
required. 

I am so busy with our case on trial here that I 
cannot examine authorities here as fully as you 
can there. If after all the indictment shall be 
quashed it will prove that my forte is as a states- 
man rather than a prosecutor. 
Yours as ever, 

A. Lincoln 



To R. M. CORWINE 1 

Springfield, III., April 6*^, i860. 

Hon. R. M. Corwine. 

My Dear Sir — Reaching home yesterday after an 
absence of more than two weeks, I found your let- 
ter of the 24th of March. Remembering that when 
not a very great man begins to be mentioned for a 
very great position, his head is very likely to be a 
little turned, I concluded I am not the fittest per- 
son to answer the questions you ask. Making due 
allowance for this, I think Mr. Seward is the very 
best candidate we could have for the North of Illi- 
nois, and the very worst for the South of it. The 
estimate of Gov. Chase here is neither better nor 

^ A delegate from Ohio to the Chicago Convention in i860. 
During the War for the Union he served on the staif of General 
Fremont. 



To R. M. Corwine 139 

worse than that of Seward, except that he is a 
'newer man. They are regarded as being almost the 
same, seniority giving Seward the inside track. 
Mr. Bates, I think, would be the best man for 
the South of our State, and the worst for the North 
of it. If Judge McLean ^ was fifteen, or even ten 
years younger, I think he would be stronger than 
either, in our state, taken as a whole; but his great 
age, and the recollection of the deaths of Harrison 
and Taylor have, so far, prevented his being much 
spoken of here. 

I really believe we can carry the state for either 
of them, or for any one who may be nominated; 
but doubtless it would be easier to do it with some 
than with others. 

I feel myself disqualified to speak of myself in 
this matter. I feel this letter will be of little value 
to you ; but I can make it no better, under the cir- 
cumstances. Let it be strictly confidential, not that 
there is any thing really objectionable in it, but 
because it might be misconstrued. 
Yours very truly, 

A. Lincoln. 

* John McLean, of Ohio, United States Supreme Court Jus- 
tice. He received twelve votes on the first ballot in the con- 
vention and five on the third and last ballot. 



140 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

To Lyman Trumbull^ 

Springfield, Ills. April 7, i860 

Hon: L. Trumbull 

My dear Sir: Reaching home from Chicago, 
where I have been engaged two weeks in the trial 
of a lawsuit, I found your letter of March 26th. 

Of course you can do no better for Delahay 
than you promise. I am trying to keep out of the 
contest among our friends for the Gubernatorial 
nomination; but from what I hear, the result is in 
considerable doubt. 

We have just had a clear party victory in our 
City election; and our friends are more encour- 
aged, and our enemies more cowed by it, than by 
anything since the organization of the Republi- 
can party. Last year we carried the city; but we 
did it, not by our own strength, but by an open 
feud among our enemies. This year their feud was 
healed ; and we beat them fairly by main strength. 

I can scarcely give an opinion as to what effect 
a nomination of Judge McLean, by the Union Con- 
vention, would have. I do not believe he would ac- 
cept it; and if he did, that fact alone, I think, would 
shut him out of the Chicago Convention. If he 
were ten years younger he would be our best can- 
didate. 

Yours as ever A. Lincoln 

* See note on p. 66. 



To Mark W. Delahay 141 

To John M. Carson . 

Springfield, April 7, i860 

John M. Carson, Esq., 

Chairman of the Committee of Lectures 
Of the Harrison Literary Institute. 
Dear Sir: Yours of March 14 addressed to me at 
Chicago seeking to arrange with me to lecture for 
the Harrison Literary Institute has been received. 
I regret that I cannot make such an arrangement. 
I am not a professional lecturer. Have never got 
up but one lecture, and that I think rather a poor 
one. Besides, what time I can spare from my own 
business this season I shall be compelled to give to 
politics. 

Respectfully yours, 

A. Lincoln. 

To Mark W. Delahay ^ 

Springfield, Ills. 
April 14, i860. 

M. W. Delahay, 

My dear Sir: Reaching home last night I find 
your letter of the 7th. You know I was in New 
England. Some of the acquaintances I made while 
there, write me since the elections that the close 

* Published in the Works with name suppressed (Works, Nico- 
lay and Hay, 1894, i, 633, and same, Tandy's ed., 1905, vi, 10). 



142 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

votes in Conn, and the quasi defeat in R.L are a 
drawback upon the prospects of Gov. Seward; and 
Trumbull writes Dubois to the same effect. Do 
not mention this as coming from me. Both those 
states are safe enough for us in the fall. I see by the 
dispatches that since you wrote, Kansas has ap- 
pointed Delegates and instructed them for Seward. 
Don't stir them up to anger, but come along to the 
convention, and I will do as I said about expenses. 
Yours as ever, 

A. Lincoln, 



To Lyman Trumbull ^ 

Springfield, April 29, i860 

Hon: L. Trumbull: 

My dear Sir: Yours of the 24th was duly received ; 
and I have postponed answering it, hoping by the 
result at Charleston, to know who is to lead our 
adversaries, before writing. But Charleston hangs 
fire, and I wait no longer. 

As you request, I will be entirely frank. The 
taste is in my mouth a little; and this, no doubt, 
disqualifies me, to some extent, to form correct 
opinions. You may confidently rely, however, that 
by no advice or consent of mine, shall my preten- 
tions be pressed to the point of endangering our 
common cause. 

^ See note on p. 66. 



To Lyman Trumbull 143 

Now, as to my opinions about the chances of 
others in Illinois. I think neither Seward nor Bates 
can carry Illinois if Douglas shall be on the track; 
and that either of them can, if he shall not be. I 
rather think McLean could carry it with D. on or 
off; in other words, I think McLean is stronger in 
Illinois, taking all sections of it, than either S. or B ; 
and I think S. the weakest of the three. I hear no 
objection to Mr. McLean, except his age; but that 
objection seems to occur to every one; and it is 
possible it might leave him no stronger than the 
others. By the way, if we should nominate him, 
how would we save to ourselves the chance of fill- 
ing his vacancy in the Court ? Have him hold on up 
to the moment of his inauguration? Would that 
course be no draw-back upon us in the canvass ? 

Recurring to Illinois, we want something here 
quite as much as, and which is harder to get than, 
the electoral vote — the Legislature. And it is 
exactly in this point that Seward's nomination 
would be hard upon us. Suppose he should gain us 
a thousand votes in Winnebago, it would not com- 
pensate for the loss of fifty in Edgar. 

A word now for your own special benefit. You 
better write no letters which can possibly be dis- 
torted into opposition, or quasi opposition to me. 
There are men on the constant watch for such 
things out of which to prejudice my peculiar friends 
against you. 



144 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

While I have no more suspicion of you than I 
have of my best friend living, I am kept in a con- 
stant struggle against suggestions of this sort. I 
have hesitated some to write this paragraph, lest 
you should suspect I do it for my own benefit, and 
not for yours; but on reflection I conclude you will 
not suspect me. 

Let no eye but your own see this — not that 
there is anything wrong, or even ungenerous, in it; 
but it would be misconstrued. 

Your friend as ever A. Lincoln 

To Lyman Trumbull^ 

Private 

Springfield, May i, i860 
Hon: L. Trumbull 

Dear Sir: In my last letter to you I believe I said 
I thought Mr. Seward would be weaker in Illinois 
than Mr. Bates. I write this to qualify the opinion 
so far as to say I think S. weaker than B. in our 
close Legislative districts; but probably not weaker 
taking the whole State over. 

We now understand that Douglas will be nomi- 
nated to-day by what is left of the Charleston 
Convention. 

All parties here dislike it. Republicans and 
Danites,^ that he should be nominated at all; and 

^ See note on p. 66. - See note on p. 97. 



To C. M. Allen 145 

Doug. Dem's that he should not be nominated by 
an undivided Convention. 

Yours as ever 

A. Lincoln 



To C. M. Allen ^ 

Springfield, Ills,, May i, i860 

Hon: C. M. Allen: 

My dear Sir: Your very kind letter of the 27th, 
was received yesterday. This writing being early 
in the morning, Douglas is not yet nominated ; but 
we suppose he certainly will be before sun-set to- 
day, a few of the smaller Southern states having 
seceded from the convention — just enough to per- 
mit his nomination, and not enough to hurt him 
much at the election. This puts the case in the 
hardest shape for us. But fight we must; and con- 
quer we shall, in the end. 

Our friend Dubois, and Judge David Davis, of 
Bloomington, one or both, will meet you at Chi- 
cago, on the 1 2th. 

If you let Usher ^ and Griswold of Terre Haute 
know, I think they will co-operate with you. 
Yours very truly, 

A. Lincoln. 

* Of Vincennes, Ind. Original owned by Mr. Irving Swan 
Brown, of Worcester, Mass. 

* John P. Usher, a lawyer friend of Lincoln's and afterwards 
his Secretary of the Interior. 



146 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

To R. M. CORWINE 

Private 

Springfield, III., May 2, i860. 

Hon. R. M. Corwine. 

Dear Sir: — Yours of the 30th ult. is just re- 
ceived. After what you have said, it is perhaps 
proper I should post you, so far as I am able, as to 
the " lay of the land." First I think the Illinois del- 
egation will be unanimous for me at the start ; and 
no other delegation will. A few individuals in other 
delegations would like to go for me at the start, but 
may be restrained by their colleagues. It is repre- 
sented to me by men who ought to know, that the 
whole of Indiana might not be difficult to get. You 
know how it is in Ohio. I am certainly not the first 
choice there; and yet I have not heard that anyone 
makes any positive objection to me. It is just so 
everywhere as far as I can perceive. Everywhere, 
except here in Illinois and possibly Indiana, one or 
another is preferred to me, but there is no positive 
objection. This is the ground as it now appears. I 
believe you personally know C. M. Allen of Vin- 
cennes, Indiana. He is a delegate and has notified 
me that the entire Indiana delegation will be in 
Chicago the same day you name, Saturday, the 
1 2th. My friends, Jesse K. Dubois, our auditor, 
and Judge David Davis, will probably be there 



[Facsimile] 



''/^Oa./ \-tyy III '.,K k < f^'^ 



To Lyman Trumbull 147 

ready to confer with friends from other States. Let 
me hear from you again when anything occurs. 
Yours very truly, 

A. Lincoln. 



To James Grant Wilson 

Springfield, May 2, i860. 
Mr. James G. Wilson. 

My Dear Friend: I am greatly obliged for the 
volume of your friend Fitz Greene Halleck's poems. 
Many a month has passed since I have met with 
anything more admirable than his beautiful lines 
on Burns. With Alnwick Castle, Marco Bozzaris, 
and Red Jacket, I am also much pleased. 

It is wonderful that you should have seen and 
known a sister of Robert Bums. You must tell me 
something about her when we meet again. 
Yours very truly, 

A. Lincoln. 

To Lyman Trumbull ^ 

Springfield, May 26, i860 
Hon: L. Trumbull: 

My dear Sir: I have received three letters from 
you since the nomination, for all which I sincerely 
thank you. As you say, if we can not get our State 
up now, I do not see when we can. 

^ See note on p. 66. 



148 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

The nominations start well here, and everywhere 
else, so far as I have heard. We may have a back- 
set yet. Give my respects to the Republican Sena- 
tors; and especially to Mr. Hamlin, Mr. Seward, 
Gen. Cameron, and Mr. Wade. Also to your good 
wife. 

Write again; and do not write so short letters as 
I do. 

Your friend, as ever 

A. Lincoln 

To William C. Baker 

Springfield, May 28, i860. 
W^ C. Baker, 
You request an autograph and here it is. 

A. Lincoln 

To Leonard Swett 

Springfield, Ills. May 30, i860. 
Hon. L. Swett. 

My dear Sir: Your letter written to go to New 
York is long, but substantially right I believe. You 
heard Weed conversed with me, and you now have 
Putnam's letters. It can not have failed to strike 
you that these men ask for just the same thing — 
fairness and fairness only. This so far as in my 
power, they and all others shall have. If this sug- 
gests any modification of or addition to your letter 



To Charles C. Nott 149 

make it accordingly. Bum this; not that there is 
anything wrong in it, but because it is best not to 
be known that I wrote at all. 

Yours as ever 

A. Lincoln 



To Charles C. Nott ^ 

Springfield, Ills, 
May 31, i860. 

Charles C. Nott, Esq. 

My Dear Sir: Yours of the 23 rd, accompanied by 
a copy of the speech delivered by me at the Cooper 
Institute, and upon which you have made some 
notes for emendations, was received some days ago. 
Of course I would not object to, but would be 
pleased rather, with a more perfect edition of that 
speech. 

I did not preserve memoranda of my investiga- 
tions; and I could not now re-examine, and make 
notes, without an expenditure of time which I can 
not bestow upon it. Some of your notes I do not 
understand. 

So far as it is intended merely to improve in 
grammar and elegance of composition, I am quite 
agreed; but I do not wish the sense changed, or 
modified, to a hair's breadth. And you, not having 

^ Appointed judge of the Court of Claims by President Lin- 
coln in 1865 and made chief justice of the court by President 
Cleveland in 1896. 



ISO Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

studied the particular points so closely as I have, 
can not be quite sure that you do not change the 
sense when you do not intend it. For instance, in a 
note at bottom of first page, you propose to sub- 
stitute "Democrats" for "Douglas." But what I 
am saying there is true of Douglas, and is not true 
of "Democrats" generally; so that the proposed 
substitution would be a very considerable blunder. 
Your proposed insertion of "residences" though it 
would do little or no harm, is not at all necessary to 
the sense I was trying to convey. On page 5 your 
proposed grammatical change would certainly do 
no harm. The "impudently absurd'' I stick to. The 
striking out "he" and inserting "we" turns the 
sense exactly wrong. The striking out "upon it" 
leaves the sense too general and incomplete. The 
sense is "act as they acted upon that question** — 
not as they acted generally. 

After considering your proposed changes on page 
7, 1 do not think them material, but I am willing to 
defer to you in relation to them. 

On page 9, striking out "to us " is probably right. 
The word "lawyer's" I wish retained. The word 
"Courts" struck out twice, I wish reduced to 
"Court" and retained. "Court" as a collective 
noun properly governs the plural "have" as I un- 
derstand. "The" preceding "Court," in the latter 
case, must also be retained. The words "quite," 
"as," and "or" on the same page, I wish retained. 



To Lyman Trumbull 151 

The Italicising, and quotation marking, I have no 
objection to. 

As to the note at bottom, I do not think any too 
much is admitted. What you propose on page 11, 
is right. I return your copy of the speech, together 
with one printed here, under my own hasty super- 
vising. That at New York was printed without any 
supervision by me. If you conclude to publish a 
new edition, allow me to see the proof-sheets. 

And now thanking you for your very compli- 
mentary letter, and your interest for me generally, 
I subscribe myself. 

Your friend and servant, 

A. Lincoln. 



To Lyman Trumbull ^ 

Springfield, Ills. May 31, i860. 

Hon. L. Trumbull 

My dear Sir: Yours of the 28th, inclosing that 
which I have carefully read, and now return, is re- 
ceived. Please say to Mr. Hamlin that my letter of 
acceptance is already written and forwarded to 
Mr. Ashmun,^ at Springfield, Mass. ; that I would 
send him, Mr. Hamlin, a copy, only that Mr. Ash- 
mun, when here, sought and obtained a promise 

* See note on p. 66. 

* George Ashmun of Massachusetts, Chairman of the Repub- 
lican National Convention. 



152 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

from me that I would furnish a copy to no one ; that 
the letter is very short, and, I think, conflicts with 
none of Mr. Morey's suggestions, except that it 
may be published by Mr. Ashmun before the Balti- 
more Convention. Perhaps it would be best for 
Mr. Hamlin and yourself not to communicate the 
fact that the letter of acceptance is already written. 
I am glad to learn the Philadelphia meeting had 
force enough to not be spoiled by the storm. I look 
with great interest for your letters now. 
Your friend as ever, 

A. Lincoln 

To William A. Buckingham ^ 

Springfield, Illinois, 
June 4, i860. 

Hon. W^ a. Buckingham 

My Dear Sir: Your kind letter of congratulation 
was duly received, and I beg you will believe that 
necessity alone has delayed the acknowledgement 
of its receipt so long. I am truly glad to learn that 
you have recovered your voice and that your gen- 
eral health is better. 

Please present my respects to Mrs. B. and believe 
me, 

Very truly yours, 

A. Lincoln 

^ Governor of Connecticut, 1858-66. Printed by the courtesy 
of Gen. William Appleton Aiken, of Norwich, Conn. 



To Lyman Trumbull 153 

To Joseph C. Abbott 

Springfield, Ills. June 4, i860. 

Joseph C. Abbott, Esq. 

My dear Sir: Yours of the 22"^^ was duly re- 
ceived, but, till now I have not found leisure to so 
much as acknowledge the receipt of it. 

Of course I very well remember you ; and I shall 
be pleased to hear from you at any time. 
Yours very truly, 

A. Lincoln. 

To Lyman Trumbull ^ 

Springfield, Ills. June 5, i860 

Hon. L. Trumbull 

My dear Sir: Yours of May 31, inclosing Judge 
Read's ^ letter, is received. 

I see by the papers this morning, that Mr. Fill- 
more refuses to go with us. What do the New- 
Yorkers at Washington think of this ? Gov. Reeder 
was here last evening direct from Pennsylvania. 
He is entirely confident of that State, and of the 
general result. I do not remember to have heard 
Gen. Cameron's opinion of Penn. Weed was here, 
and saw me; but he showed no signs whatever of 
the intriguer. He asked for nothing; and said N.Y. 
is safe, without condition. 

^ See note on p. 66. 

' Judge Read of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania. 



154 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

Remembering that Peter denied his Lord with an 
oath, after most solemnly protesting that he never 
would, I will not swear I will make no committals; 
but I do think I will not. 

Write me often. I look with great interest for 
your letters now. 

Yours as ever, A. Lincoln 

To Charles Lanman 

Springfield, III., June 9, i860. 

Charles Lanman Esq., 

My Dear Sir: Yours of the 4^^ is duly received ; 
and I shall gratefully accept the book when it ar- 
rives, as it has not yet done. I already have a copy 
which I purchased near a year ago, and which I 
have found both interesting and valuable. 

I thank you for both your letter and the book, 
and shall be pleased to meet you at any time. 
Yours respectfully, 

A. Lincoln. 

To J. E. TiLTON 

Springfield, III., 
June II, i860. 

To J. E. TiLTON. 

Boston. 
Dear Sir: I have received your note . . . and also 
the book. . . . 
I have not yet had time to examine the book, but 



To George W, Lewis 155 

when I shall have done so, I probably shall present 
it it [sic] to the younger Lincoln, as you request. 
Yours truly 

A. Lincoln. 

To Joshua R. Giddings ^ 

Springfield, Ills., June 26, i860 
Hon. J. R. Giddings. 

My dear Sir: Yours of June 19th was received in 
due course, and its receipt would have been sooner 
acknowledged but for illness in my family. The 
suggestions you make are very important, and are 
duly appreciated by me. If I fail, it will be for lack 
of ability, and not of purpose. 

Your note, sent by Mr. Tuck, was received, and 
answered ; but as you make no mention of my an- 
swer, I fear you did not receive it. 

Mrs. L. joins me in remembrances and good 
wishes for you. 

Your very truly, A. Lincoln. 

To George W. Lewis 

Springfield, III., June 30, i860 
Geo. W. Lewis, Esq., 

Dear Sir: Herewith I send you my autograph, 
which you request. 

Yours truly A. Lincoln 

* This is the second letter to Mr. Giddings after Mr. Lincoln's 
nomination for President. Original owned by Mr. Jesse W. Weik. 



156 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 
To Leonard Swett 

Springfield, Ills., July 16, i860 

Dear Swett: Herewith I return the letters of 
Messrs. Putnam and Casey. I thank you for send- 
ing them — in the main, they bring good news. 
And yet that matter mentioned by Mr. Casey 
about want of confidence in their Central commit- 
tee pains me. I am afraid there is a germ of diffi- 
culty in it. Will not the men thus suspected, and 
treated as proposed, rebel, and make a dangerous 
explosion ? When you write Mr. Casey, suggest to 
him that great caution and delicacy of action is 
necessary in that matter. 

I would like to see you and the Judge, one or 
both, about that matter of your going to Pennsyl- 
vania. 

Yours, as ever, 

A. Lincoln 

To Francis E. Spinner ^ 

Springfield, Ills. July 27, i860. 

Hon. F. E. Spinner. 

Dear Sir: You will perhaps be pleased, as I have 
been, to know that many good men have tendered 
me substantially the same advice that you do (ex- 

* Member of Congress from New York, 1855-61; Treasurer 
of the United States, 1861-75. 



To George G. Fogg 157 

cepting as to re-election) and that no single man 
of any mark has, so far, tempted me to a contrary 
course. . . , 

Yours very truly, A. Lincoln. 

To Thomas Doney 

Springfield, Ills., July 30, i860. 

Thomas Doney, Esq. 

My dear Sir: The picture (I know not the artistic 
designation) was duly and thankfully received. I 
consider it a very excellent one; though, truth to 
say, I am a very indifferent judge. 

The receipt of it should have been acknowledged 
long ago; but it had passed from my mind till re- 
minded of it by the letter of our friend, Dr. Dodson. 
Yours very truly, 

A. Lincoln. 

To George G. Fogg ^ 

Springfield, Ills. Aug. 16, i860 

Hon. George G. Fogg. 

My dear Sir: I am annoyed some by the printed 
paragraph below, in relation to myself, taken from 
the N.Y. Herald's correspondence from this place 
of August 8^^. 

^ Then a member of the Republican National Committee; 
afterwards Minister to Switzerland (1861-65) and Senator 
from New Hampshire (1866-67). Original owned by Mr. Judd 
Stewart, Plainfield, N.J. 



158 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

" He had, he said, on one occasion been invited to 
go into Kentucky and revisit some of the scenes 
with whose history his father in his hfetime had 
been identified. On asking by letter whether Judge 
Lynch would be present, he received no response; 
and he therefore came to the conclusion that the 
invitation was a trap laid by some designing person 
to inveigle him into a slave state for the purpose of 
doing violence to his person." 

This is decidedly wrong. I did not say it. I do 
not impugn the correspondent. I suppose he mis- 
conceived the statement from the following inci- 
dent. Soon after the Chicago nomination, I was 
written to by a highly respectable gentleman of 
Harden County, Ky., inquiring if I was a son of 
Thomas Lincoln, whom he had known long ago in 
that county. I answered that I was, and that I was 
myself born there. He wrote again, and, among 
other things, (did not invite me) but simply in- 
quired if it would not be agreeable to me to revisit 
the scenes of my childhood. I replied among other 
things, "It would indeed, but would you not 
Lynch me?" He did not write again. 

I have playfully (and never otherwise) related 
this incident several times; and I suppose I did so to 
the Herald correspondent, though I do not remem- 
ber it. If I did, it is all that I did say from which 
the correspondent could have inferred his state- 
ment. 



To George Bliss and Others 159 

Now, I dislike, exceedingly, for Kentuckians to 
understand that I am charging them with a purpose 
to inveigle me, and do violence to me. Yet I can 
not go into the newspapers. Would not the editor 
of the Herald, upon being shown this letter, insert 
the short correction which you find upon the in- 
closed scrap .? 

Please try him, unless you perceive some suffi- 
cient reason to the contrary. In no event, let my 
name be pubhcly used. 

Yours very truly 

A. Lincoln. 

Correction 

We have such assurance as satisfies us that our 
correspondent writing from Springfield, Ills., under 
date of Aug. 8 was mistaken in representing Mr. 
Lincoln as expressing a suspicion of a design to in- 
veigle him into Kentucky for the purpose of doing 
him violence. 

Mr. Lincoln neither entertains, nor has intended 
to express any such suspicion. 

To George Buss and Others^ 

Springfield, Aug. 22, i860. 
To Messrs. Geo. Bliss & Others, Managers &c. 
Gentlemen: Yours of the 8th inviting my attend- 
ance at your National Exhibition of Imported 

^ Original owned by P. F. Madigan, Esq. 



i6o Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

Blood & American breeds of Horses, on the 4th, 
5th, 6th & 7th days of September, at Springfield, 
Mass., was received in due course, and should have 
been answered sooner. 

For reasons not necessary to be mentioned, I am 
constrained to decline the honor which you so 
kindly tender me. 

Your Obt. Servant, 

A. Lincoln. 



To George G. Fogg 

Springfield, Ills. Aug. 29, i860. 

Hon. George G. Fogg. 

My dear Sir: Yours of the 2^^ was only received 
yesterday evening. 

You have done precisely right in that matter 
with the Herald. Do nothing further about it. Al- 
though it wrongs me, and annoys me some, I prefer 
letting it run its course, to getting into the papers 
over my own name. I regret the trouble it has 
given you, and thank you also for having performed 
your part so cheerfully and correctly. 

What you say of the Empire state is of a piece 
with all the news I received from there. The whole 
field appears reasonably well. 

Yours very truly, 

A. Lincoln. 



To Anson G. Chester i6i 

To Anson G. Chester^ 
Private 
Springfield, Ills., Sept 5, i860 
Anson G. Chester, Esq. 

My dear Sir: Yours of the ist is received. The 
extract upon a newspaper slip which you sent, and 
which I herewith return, is a base forgery, so far as 
its authorship is imputed to me. I never said any- 
thing Hke it, at any time or place. I do not rec- 
ognize it as anything I have ever seen before, 
emanating from any source. I wish my name not 
to be used ; but my friends will be entirely safe in 
denouncing the thing as a forgery, so far as it is 
ascribed to me. 

Yours very truly 

A. Lincoln 

The Clipping 

Lincoln on Jefferson. — The Macomb (111.) 
Eagle rakes up the following extract from a speech 
made by Mr. Lincoln in 1844: 

Mr. Jefferson is a statesman whose praises are 
never out of the mouth of the democratic party. 
Let us attend to this uncompromising friend of 
freedom, whose name is continually invoked 
against the Whig party. The character of Jefferson 
was repulsive. Continually puling about liberty, 

^ Original owned by Mr. Thomas R. Proctor, Utica, N.Y. 



i62 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

equality, and the degrading curse of slavery, he 
brought his own children to the hammer, and made 
money of his debaucheries. Even at his death he 
did not manumit his numerous offspring, but left 
them, soul and body, to degradation and the cart 
whip. A daughter of this vaunted champion of 
democracy was sold some years ago at public auc- 
tion in New Orleans, and purchased by a society of 
gentlemen, who wished to testify by her liberation 
their admiration of the statesman who 

"Dreampt of freedom in a slave's embrace." 
This single line I have quoted gives more insight 
to the character of the man than whole volumes of 
panegyric. It will outlive his epitaph, write it who 
may. 

To Alexander K. McClure ^ 

Springfield, Ills., Sept. 6, i860 

A. K. McClure, Esq., 

My dear Sir: Inclosed I send you a copy of a 
letter from New York, stating a matter, which, if 
true, deeply concerns our interests in Pennsylvania. 
The writer does not wish to be known; but some 
revelations of his in a former letter have subse- 
quently been verified. 

Yours truly, A. Lincoln 

^ Mr. McClure had been a Lincoln delegate from Pennsyl- 
vania to the Republican Convention of i860 and was made chair- 
man of the Republican State Committee. 



To Nathaniel Grigsby 163 

To Nathaniel Grigsby ^ 

Springfield, Ills., 
Sept. 20, i860. 

Nathaniel Grigsby, Esq., 

My dear Sir: Your letter of July 19th was re- 
ceived only a few days ago having been mailed by 
your brother at Gentryville, Ind., on the 12th of 
the month. A few days ago. Gov. Wood of Quincy 
told me he saw you, and that you said you had 
written me. I had not then received your letter. 

Of our three families who removed from Indiana 
together, my father, Squire Hall, and John D. 
Johnston, are dead, and all the rest of us are yet 
living, of course the younger ones are grown up, 
marriages contracted and new ones born. I have 
three boys now, the oldest of which is seventeen 
years of age. 

There is now a Republican electoral ticket in 
Missouri, so that you can vote for me if your neigh- 
bors will let you. I would advise you not to get 
into any trouble about it. Give my kindest regards 
to your brother Charlie. Within the present year 
I have had two letters from John Gorden, who 
is living somewhere in Missouri, I forget exactly 
where, and he says his father and mother are still 
living near him. 

Yours very truly, A. Lincoln. 

* Brother of Aaron Grigsby, who married Lincoln's sister. 
The original is owned by Mr. James W. Grigsby, of Attica, Kans. 



164 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

To Mrs. M. J. Green 

Springfield, Ills. Sep 22 i860. 
Mrs. M. J. Green 

My dear Madam: Your kind congratulatory- 
letter, of August, was received in due course, and 
should have been answered sooner. The truth is 
I have never corresponded much with ladies; and 
hence I postpone writing letters to them, as a 
business which I do not understand. I can only 
say now I thank you for the good opinion you 
express of me, fearing, at the same time, I may not 
be able to maintain it through life. 
Yours very truly, 

A. Lincoln 

To Charles C. Nott 

Springfield, Ills., 
Sept 22, i860. 

Charles C. Nott, Esq., 

My Dear Sir: Yours of the 17th was duly re- 
ceived. The 250 copies have not yet arrived. I am 
greatly obliged to you for what you have done, and 
what you propose to do. 

The "Abraham Baldwin letter" in substance 
was that I could not find the Journal of the Con- 
federation Congress for the session at which was 
passed the Ordinance of 1787, and that in stating 
Mr. Baldwin had voted for its passage, I had relied 



To L. Montgomery Bond 165 

on a communication of Mr. Greeley, over his own 
signature, published in the New York Weekly 
Tribune of October 15, 1859. If you will turn to 
that paper, you will there see that Mr. Greeley 
apparently copies from the Journal, and places the 
name of Mr. Baldwin among those of the men who 
voted for the measure. 

Still, if the Journal itself shows differently, of 
course it is right. 

Yours very truly, 

A. Lincoln. 



To L. Montgomery Bond ^ 

Private 

Springfield, Ills. Oct. 15, i860 

L. Montgomery Bond. 

My Dear Sir: Yours of the ist has been at hand 
some days. You ask, "In the event of your election 
to the Presidency, and of the election of a majority 
of Republicans to the next Congress, would you 
favor radicalism, to embitter still more the feelings 
of our Southern brethren?" I certainly am in no 
temper, and have no purpose to embitter the feel- 
ings of the south; but whether I am inclined to such 
a course as would in fact embitter their feelings, 

^ The last sentence of this letter was printed in Works, Nico- 
lay and Hay, Tandy's ed., 1905, vi, 62, and in Writings, Lapsley, 
V, 192. 



i66 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

you can better judge by my published speeches 
than any thing I would say in a short letter, if I 
were inclined now, as I am not, to define my posi- 
tion anew. 

Yours truly, 

A. Lincoln 



To David Turnham ^ 

Springfield, Ills. Oct. 23, i860. 

David Turnham, Esq., 

My dear old friend: Your kind letter of the 17^^ 
is received. I am indeed very glad to learn you are 
still living and well. I well remember when you and 
I last met, after a separation of fourteen years, at 
the cross-road voting place in the fall of 1844. It is 
now sixteen years more and we are both no longer 
young men. I suppose you are a grandfather; and 
I, though married much later in life, have a son 
nearly grown. 

I would like much to visit the old home, and old 
friends of my boyhood, but I fear the chance for 
doing so is not very good. 

Your friend and sincere well-wisher 

A. Lincoln. 

^ A boyhood friend of Lincoln's at Gentryville, Ind. Original 
owned by G. W. Turnham, Esq., Evansville, Ind. 



To Park Benjamin 167 

To George G. Fogg 

Springfield, Ills., 
Oct. 31, i860. 

George G. Fogg, Esq. 

My dear Sir: I sincerely thank you for yours 
of the 26th. It is the first I have had from 
any of our knowing friends at the City for several 
days. 

Allow me to beg that you will not live in much 
apprehension of my precipitating a letter upon the 
public. 

Yours very truly, 

A. Lincoln. 



To Park Benjamin 

Springfield, III., Nov. 19, i860 

Park Benjamin, Esq. 

My dear Sir: Your kind note of congratulation 
was received in due course ; and you are not disap- 
pointed in the hope you express that I may set 
some value upon it. 

That my political position, and personal history 
are such as to meet the unselfish approval of one 
possessing your high literary fame and character, 
is matter of sincere pride with me. 
Yours very truly, 

A. Lincoln. 



i68 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

For Lyman Trumbull ^ 

[The following autographic document begins 
with a memorandum in Lyman TrumbuH's hand- 
writing.] 

Furnished by Mr. Lincoln l^ copied into my remarks to he 
made at the celebration at Springfield, III. Nov. 20, i860 

I have labored in, and for, the Republican or- 
ganization with entire confidence that whenever it 
shall be in power, each and all of the States will 
be left in as complete control of their own affairs 
respectively, and at as perfect liberty to choose, 
and employ, their own means of protecting prop- 
erty, and preserving peace and order within their 
respective limits, as they have ever been under any 
administration. Those who have voted for Mr. 
Lincoln, have expected, and still expect this; and 
they would not have voted for him had they ex- 
pected otherwise. I regard it as extremely fortu- 
nate for the peace of the whole country, that this 
point, upon which the Republicans have been so 
long, and so persistently misrepresented, is now to 
be brought to a practical test, and placed beyond 
the possibility of doubt. Disunionists per se, are 
now in hot haste to get out of the Union, precisely 
because they perceive they can not, much longer, 
maintain apprehension among the Southern people 
that their homes, and firesides, and lives, are to be 

* See note on p. 66. 



To Henry C. Whitney 169 

endangered by the action of the Federal Govern- 
ment. With such ''NoWy or never" is the maxim. 

I am rather glad of this military preparation in 
the South. It will enable the people the more easily 
to suppress any uprisings there, which their mis- 
representations of purposes may have encouraged. 

To Fred W. French 

Springfield, III., Nov 21, i860. 

Fred W. French, Esq., 

Dear Sir: Herewith I send you my autograph 
which you request. 

Yours truly, A. Lincoln 

To Henry C. Whitney ^ 

Chicago, Nov. 26, i860 
H. C. Whitney, Esq. 

My dear Sir^ — Your note in behalf of Mr. 
Alshuler was received. I gave him a sitting. 

I regret not having an opportunity to see more 
of you. 

Please present my respects to Mrs. W. & to your 
good Father and Mother. 

Yours very truly A. Lincoln 

H. C. Whitney, Esq. 
Present. 

* From a facsimile in Henry C. Whitney's Life on the Circuit 
with Lincoln, facing p. 468. 



I70 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 
For John H. Littlefield ^ 

Springfield Nov. 30, i860 
I will pay five dollars to whoever will loan that 
sum to the bearer, Mr. Littlefield. 

A. Lincoln. 

To Lyman Trumbull 

Private 

Springfield, III., 
Dec 8, i860. 

Hon. Lyman Trumbull, 

My Dear Sir: Yours of the 2"^ is received. I 
regret exceedingly the anxiety of our friends in 
New York, of whom you write ; but it seems to me 
the sentiment in that state which sent a united 
delegation to Chicago in favor of Gov. Seward 
ought not and must not be snubbed, as it would be, 
by the omission to off^er Gov. S. a place in the 
Cabinet. I will myself take care of the question of 
'' corrupt jobs'' and see that justice is done to all 
our friends of whom you wrote as well as others. 

I have written Mr. Hamlin on this very subject of 
Gov. S. and requested him to consult fully with you. 

He will show you my note and enclosures to him; 
and then please act as therein requested. 
Yours as ever, 

A. Lincoln. 

* A student in Lincoln and Herndon's law office in 1859-60. 



To Lyman Trumbull 171 

To Lyman Trumbull ^ 

Private i^ Confidential 

Springfield, Ills. Dec. lo, i860 

Hon. L. Trumbull. 

My dear Sir: Let there be no compromise on the 
question of extending slavery. If there be, all our 
labor is lost, and, ere long, must be done again. 
The dangerous ground — that into which some of 
our friends have a hankering to run — is Pop. Sov. 
Have none of it. Stand firm. The tug has to come, 
& better now than any time hereafter. 
Yours as ever 

A. Lincoln. 



To Lyman Trumbull ^ 

Confidential 

Springfield, Ills. Dec. 17. i860 

Hon. Lyman Trumbull 

My dear Sir: Yours inclosing Mr. Wade's letter, 
which I herewith return, is received. 

If any of our friends do prove false, and fix up a 
compromise on the territorial question, I am for 
fighting again — that is all. It is but repetition for 
me to say I am for an honest inforcement of the 
Constitution — fugitive slave clause included. 

* See note on p. 66. * See note on p. 66. 



172 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

Mr. Gilmer^ of N.C. wrote me; and I answered 
confidentially, inclosing my letter to Gov. Corwin, 
to be delivered or not, as he might deem prudent. 
I now inclose you a copy of it. 

[The signature has been cut off, probably for an 
autograph-seeker.] 

To Lyman Trumbull 

Confidential 

Springfield, III., 
Dec. 21^^, i860. 

Hon. Lyman Trumbull. 

My Dear Sir: Thurlow Weed was with me nearly 
all day yesterday, and left last night with three 
short resolutions which I drew up, and which, or 
the substance of which, I think, would do much 
good if introduced and unanimously supported by 
our friends. They do not touch the territorial ques- 
tion. Mr. Weed goes to Washington with them; 
and says that he will first of all confer with you and 
Mr. Hamlin. I think it would be best for Mr. Sew- 
ard to introduce them and Mr. Weed will let him 
know that I think so. Show this to Mr. Hamlin, 
but beyond him do not let my name be known in 
the matter. 

Yours as ever, 

A. Lincoln. 

1 John A. Gilmer, Member of Congress. He was suggested 
for Lincoln's cabinet. 



To Lyman Trumbull 173 

To Lyman Trumbull ^ 

Springfield, Ills. Dec. 24, i860 

Hon. Lyman Trumbull 

My dear Sir. I expect to be able to offer Mr. 
Blair a place in the cabinet ; but I can not, as yet, be 
committed on the matter, to any extent whatever. 

Despatches have come here two days in succes- 
sion, that the Forts in South Carolina will be sur- 
rendered by the order, or consent at least, of the 
President. 

I can scarcely believe this ; but if it prove true, I 
will, if our friends at Washington concur, announce 
publicly at once that they are to be retaken after 
the inauguration. This will give the Union Men a 
rallying cry, and preparation will proceed some- 
what on their side, as well as on the other. 
Yours as ever 

A. Lincoln. 

To Lyman Trumbull ^ 

Very Confidential 

Springfield, III. Jan. 7, 1861. 

Hon. Lyman Trumbull. 

My Dear Sir: Yours of the 3^ is just received. 
. . . Gen. C. has not been offered the Treasury and 

* See note on p. 66. 

^ From Horace White's The Life of Lyman Trumbull, p. 145. 



174 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

I think will not be. It seems to me not only highly 
proper but a necessity that Gov. Chase shall take 
that place. His ability, firmness, and purity of 
character produce this propriety; and that he alone 
can reconcile Mr. Bryant and his class to the ap- 
pointment of Gov. S. to the State Department pro- 
duces the necessity. But then comes the danger 
that the protectionists of Pennsylvania will be dis- 
satisfied; and to clear this difficulty Gen. C. must 
be brought to cooperate. He would readily do this 
for the War Department. But then comes the 
fierce opposition to his having any Department, 
threatening even to send charges into the Senate 
to procure his rejection by that body. Now, what 
I would most like, and what I think he should pre- 
fer too, under the circumstances, would be to re- 
tain his place in the Senate, and if that place has 
been promised to another let that other take a 
respectable and reasonably lucrative place abroad. 
Also, let Gen. C.'s friends be, with entire fairness, 
cared for in Pennsylvania and elsewhere. I may 
mention before closing that besides the very fixed 
opposition to Gen. C. he is more amply recom- 
mended for a place in the Cabinet than any other 
man. . . . 

Yours as ever, 

A. Lincoln. 



To George D. Prentice 175 

To Leonard Swett 

Springfield, Jan. 9, 1861. 

Hon. L. Swett. 

Dear Sir: This Introduces Mr. William Yates, who 

visits Bloomington on some business matters. He 

is pecuniarily responsible for anything he will say; 

and in fact, for anything he will say on any subject. 

Yours very truly, 

A. Lincoln 

To Mrs. C. W. Pratt 

Springfield, III., Jan. 26, 1861. 

Mrs. C. W. Pratt. 

Dear Madam: Herewith I send you my auto- 
graph, which you request. 

Yours truly, 

A. Lincoln. 

To George D. Prentice ^ 
Private. 
Springfield, Ills. Feb. 2, 1861. 
My dear Sir: Yours of the 31st ult. requesting a 
copy of the inaugural is received. I have the docu- 
ment blocked out; but in the now rapidly shifting 

* The able editor of the Louisville Journal, a leading Whig 
newspaper which Lincoln had read frona his youth. He sup- 
ported the Union when the War broke out. 



176 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

scenes, I shall have to hold it subject to revision up 
to near the time of delivery. So soon as it shall take 
what I can regard as its final shape, I shall remem- 
ber, if I can, to send you a copy. 
Yours very truly 

A. Lincoln. 



To Mark W. Delahay ^ 

Executive Mansion, 
March 13th, 1861. 

M. W. Delahay, Esq. 

My dear Sir: You will start for Kansas before I 
see you again : and when I saw you a moment this 
morning, I forgot to ask you about some of the 
Kansas appointments, which I intended to do. 

If you care much about them, you can write, as 
I think I shall not make the appointments just 
yet. 

Yours in haste, 

A. Lincoln. 

Endorsement 

I wish Mr. Thomas Musten and Mr. Jones, 

named within, may retain their places for the 

present at least. 

A. Lincoln 
March 25, 1861. 

^ Printed in Works, Nicolay and Hay, 1894, 11, 10, and same, 
Tandy's ed., 1905, vi, 191, with the name suppressed. 



To Secretary Cameron 177 

To Secretary Welles 

Executive Mansion, 
March 29, 1861. 

Honorable Sec. of the Navy, 

Sir: I desire that an expedition to move by sea 
be got ready to sail as early as the 6^'' of April 
next, the whole according to memorandum en- 
closed ; and that you cooperate with the Secretary 
of War for that object. 

Your obedient servant, A. Lincoln 

Memoranda 

Navy Department. — The Pocahontas at Nor- 
folk, the Pawnee at Washington, and revenue cut- 
ter Harriet Lane at New York, to be ready for sea 
with one month's stores. 

Three hundred seamen to be ready for leaving 
the receiving ship at New York. 

War Department. — Two hundred men at New 
York ready to leave garrison. One year's stores to 
be put in a portable form. 

To Secretary Cameron ^ 

Draft of an unsigned letter written but not officially transmitted 

Executive Mansion, 
March 1861. 

To the Secretary of War, 

Sir: You will favor me by issuing an order de- 
tailing Lieut. E. E. Ellsworth of the ist Dragoons, 

^ Copy furnished by Mr. Judd Stewart. 



178 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

for special duty as Adjutant and Inspector General 
of militia affairs, for the United States, and in so 
far as existing laws will admit, charge him with the 
transaction, under your direction, of all business 
pertaining to the militia, to be conducted as a sepa- 
rate bureau of which Lieut. Ellsworth will be chief; 
with instructions to take measures for promoting 
a uniform system of organization, drill, equipment, 
etc., of the United States militia, and to prepare a 
system of instruction for the militia, to be dis- 
tributed to the several states. You will please as- 
sign him suitable office rooms, furniture, etc., and 
provide him with a clerk and messenger, and fur- 
nish him such facilities in the way of printing, sta- 
tionery, access to records, etc., as he may desire for 
the successful prosecution of his duties; and also 
provide, if you please, in such manner as will best 
answer the purpose, for a monthly payment to 
Lieut. Ellsworth, for this extra duty, sufficient to 
make his pay and emoluments equal that of a Major 
of Cavalry. 

To Postmaster-General Blair ^ 

Executive Mansion. 
April II, 1861. 

Hon. p. M. G. 

Sir — Has a Post-Master been appointed, as yet, 
at Covington, Ky. Col. Carpenter wishes John S. 

^ From a facsimile in Helen Nicolay's Personal Traits of Abra- 
ham Lincoln, p. 186. 



To Attorney-General Bates 179 

Scott to be appointed. He says Scott is a Douglas 
Union-man. I know nothing as to the propriety of 
this ; but write to keep a promise. 

Lincoln 



To Secretary Chase ^ 

Executive Mansion, 
April II, 1861. 

Hon. S. p. Chase. 

Dear Sir: W. W. Danenhower is the only marked 
representative of the American organization in Illi- 
nois, who cooperated with us in 1858 and i860, and 
who is now asking anything here. He was very 
serviceable to us then, and is very needy now. 

Can anything be found for him — permanent or 
temporary ? 

Please try. 

Yours very truly, A. Lincoln 

To Attorney-General Bates 

Executive Mansion, 
April 12, 1861. 

Hon. Atty. General, 

My dear Sir: On examination of papers, and full 
consideration, I have concluded to appoint Earl 
Bile, Marshal for the Northern District of Ohio. 

Please send me the commission. 

Yours truly A. Lincoln. 

* Original owned by Mr. Joseph A. McAIeenan, New York. 



i8o Letters of Abraham Lincoln 
To Secretary Smith 

Executive Mansion, 

Washington April 13, 1861. 

Secretary of the Interior. 

Dear Sir: Send Commissions as follows : Register 
of Land Office at Sante Fe, N.M., Joel Houghton, 
in place of O. H. Perry Richardson, removed. 

Indian Agent at Sante Fe, John Ward, in place 
of Silas Kendrick, removed. 

Indian Agent, Ramon Luna, in place of John L. 
Russell, removed. 

Indian Agent, Jose Antonio Maurinares, in place 
of Diego Archuletta, removed. 

If you and Mr. Dole approve the above, let the 
Commissions be sent. 

Yours truly, 

A. Lincoln. 

To Secretary Welles ^ 

Executive Mansion, 
April 23, 1861. 

Hon. Secretary of Navy, 

Dear Sir: I think I saw three vessels go up to the 
Navy Yard just now. Will you please send down 
and learn what they are ? 

Yours truly 

A. Lincoln 

* Original owned by Mr. Joseph A. McAleenan, New York. 



To Secretary Welles i8i 

To Postmaster-General Blair 

Executive Mansion, 
April 24, 1 861. 

Hon. p. M. General, 

My dear Sir: Near a week ago, it was settled for 
Cornelius Walborn to be Post-Master at Phila- 
delphia. Has the actual appointment been made .'' 
I have the papers in the case from your Depart- 
ment lying by me, and will sign and send them 
over, if you say so. 

Your obed't Serv*t, 

A. Lincoln 



To Secretary Welles 

Executive Mansion, 
Washington, April 25, 1861. 

Hon. Secretary of Navy, 

My dear Sir: Francis A. Hoffmann, our Lieut 
Governor of Illinois has an application on file for 
his son Francis to be appointed to the Naval 
School, but finds he is too old. He therefore wishes 
to substitute the name of a younger son — Julius 
Hoffmann — who is now but sixteen. I wish this 
appointment made so soon as it can be consistently 
with what I have already said in other cases. 

Please keep me reminded of it. 
Yours truly, 

A. Lincoln 



i82 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

Endorsement on Letter of Secretary 
Seward 

Col. Lander is a valuable man to us. Will Gen'l 
Scott see him a few minutes and consider the feasi- 
bility of his plans ? ^ 

A. Lincoln 

May 4, 1861. 

To Secretary Chase ^ 

Executive Mansion, 
May 7, 1 861. 

Hon. Secretary of Treasury. 

My dear Sir: You may remember that John S. 
Gallaher, a worthy Virginia gentleman, has been 
and is an applicant for an Auditorship in your De- 
partment. He now writes a friend here that he un- 
derstands that the place of 5th Auditor has been 
made vacant by the resignation of a North Caro- 
linian. If this is true, might not Mr. Gallaher have 
the place .? ^ 

Yours truly, 

A. Lincoln 

' Col. Lander had a project of raising a Virginia regiment. 
2 Original owned by Mr. Joseph A. McAleenan. 
^ John C. Underwood of Virginia received the appointment, 
serving from July 31, 1861, to Aug. 31, 1863. 



To Secretary Cameron 183 

To Joseph H. Barrett, Commissioner of 

Pensions ^ 

Executive Mansion 
May 8, 1861 

Hon. Com^ of Pensions, 

My dear Sir: Once more I ask you to find a 
clerkship for a man of your own name — 0. D. 
Barret, of Oswego Co., New York. 
Yours truly 

A. Lincoln 



To Secretary Cameron ^ 

Executive Mansion, 
May 21, 1861 

Hon. Secretary of War. 

My dear Sir: — Why cannot Colonel Small's 
Philadelphia regiment be received .? I sincerely wish 
it could. There is something strange about it. Give 
these gentlemen an interview, and take their regi- 
ment. 

Yours truly, 

A. Lincoln. 

^ From a facsimile in Munsey's Magazine, xii, 591 (Mar., 
1895), after the original in the collection of Mr. Lawrence 
Mendenhall. 

' Printed in Writings^ Lapsley ed., v, 308. 



i84 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 
To Commander John A. Dahlgren* 

Executive Mansion, 
May 23, 1861. 

Capt. Dahlgren. 

My dear Sir: — Allow me to introduce Col. J. A. 
McClernand, M. C. of my own district in Illinois. 
If he should desire to visit Fortress Monroe, 
please introduce him to the captain of one of 
the vessels in our service, and pass him down 
and back. 

Yours very truly, 

A. Lincoln. 



To Gen. Lorenzo Thomas ^ 

Executive Mansion, 
May 27, 1861. 

Gen. Thomas, 

The three gentleman who will hand you this 
note, belong to an Artillery Company at Baltimore 
who wish to get into the United States Service . . . 
and . . . if you advise it, I will receive them. I hate 
to reject any offer from what is called a Southern 
State. . . . 

A. Lincoln 

* Printed in Writings, Lapsley ed., v, 309. 

* The Adjutant-General. 



To Secretary Chase 185 

To Secretary Cameron ^ 

Executive Mansion, 
May 30, 1861. 

Hon. Secretary of War. 

My dear Sir — Colonel Julian Allen, a Polish 
gentleman, naturalized, proposes raising a regi- 
ment of our citizens of his nationality, to serve in 
our army. He proposes getting them from the dif- 
ferent states, without particular order, as can be 
most conveniently done, and organizing them here, 
so that they, as a regiment, shall hail from no par- 
ticular state. Mr. Allen is highly recommended, as 
you will see by his testimonials. 

If he so raises and tenders a regiment, I am in 
favor of accepting it, unless there be some objec- 
tion which does not occur to me. 
Yours truly, 

A. Lincoln. 

To Secretary Chase 

Endorsement 

Hon. Sec of Treasury, 

If it is determined, as I suppose, that Mr. Mul- 

ler^ be appointed, let it be done at once; as by the 

above it appears to be necessary. 

Yours truly, A. Lincoln 

May 31, 1861. 

* In Alvah P. French's collection. * James N. MuUer. 



i86 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 



To Gen. James W. Ripley ^ 

Will Gen. Ripley please consider whether this 
Musket-shell would be a valuable missile in battle ? 

June 2, 1861. A. Lincoln 



To Secretary Welles ^ 

Executive Mansion, 
June 17, 1861. 

Hon. Sec. of Navy, 

My dear Sir: General Rousseau introduces to me 
Charles E. Anderson whom he wishes to have ap- 
pointed Paymaster in the Navy. As I have no 
doubt of his fitness for the place, and as the ap- 
pointment would be a Kentucky appointment, I 
think it ought to be made as soon as it consistently 
can. 

Yours truly, A. Lincoln. 

To NiNiAN W. Edwards ^ 

Washington, D.C, June 19, 1861. 

Hon. N. W. Edwards 

My dear Sir: It pains me to hear you speak of 
being ruined in your pecuniary affairs. I still hope 

1 Chief of Ordnance. 

^ Original owned by Mrs. Nellie Anderson, Greencastle, Ind. 
Copy furnished by Jesse W. Weik, Esq. 

' A brother-in-law of Mrs. Lincoln and a lawyer and public 



To Secretary Cameron 187 

you are injured only, and not ruined. When you 
wrote me some time ago in reference to looking up 
something in the Departments here, I thought I 
would inquire into the thing and write you, but the 
extraordinary pressure upon me diverted me from 
it, and soon it passed out of my mind. The thing 
you proposed, it seemed to me, I ought to under- 
stand myself before it was set on foot by my direc- 
tion or permission ; and I really had no time to make 
myself acquainted with it — nor have I yet. And 
yet I am unwilling, of course, that you should be 
deprived of a chance to make something, if it can 
be done without injustice to the Government, or 
to any individual. If you choose to come here and 
point out to me how this can be done, I shall not 
only not object, but shall be gratified to be able to 
oblige you. 

Your friend as ever, 

A. Lincoln. 



To Secretary Cameron ^ 

Executive Mansion, June 20, 1861. 
My dear Sir: — Since you spoke to me yesterday 
about General J. H. Lane, of Kansas, I have been 
reflecting upon the subject, and have concluded 

official of Illinois. Lincoln appointed him captain commissary of 
subsistence in August, 1861. Printed, without the first two sen- 
tences, in Writings, Lapsley ed., v, 313. 
» Printed in Writings, Lapsley ed., V, 314. 



i88 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

that we need the service of such a man out there at 
once; that we had better appoint him a brigadier- 
general of volunteers to-day, and send him off 
with such authority to raise a force (I think two 
regiments better than three, but as to this I am not 
particular) as you think will get him into actual 
work quickest. Tell him, when he starts, to put it 
through — not to be writing or telegraphing back 
here, but put it through. 

Yours truly, 

A. Lincoln. 

Hon. Secretary of War. 

[Endorseme7it\ 

General Lane has been authorized to raise two 
additional regiments of volunteers. 

Simon Cameron, 
Secretary of War. 

To Col. Ward H. Lamon ^ 

Washington, D.C. 
June 25, 1861. 

Col. W. H. Lamon: 

My dear Sir, — I spoke to the Secretary of War 
yesterday, and he consents, and so do I, that as 
fast as you get Companies, you may procure a 

* From Ward Hill Lamon's Recollections of Abraham Lincoln, 
2d ed., Washington, 191 1, p. xxix. 



To Orville H. Browning 189 

U.S. officer, and have them mustered in. Have 
this done quietly; because we cannot do the labor 
of adopting it as a general practice. 
Yours as ever, 

A. Lincoln 



To THE Treasury Department ^ 

I desire that the Treasury Department will de- 
vise a system or plan for disbursing the appropria- 
tion mentioned within, and if, according to said 
plan, disbursing agents are to be appointed I shall 
be ready to appoint them, on the recommendation 
of the Department. In case of Indiana, I am sat- 
isfied with Jonathan S. Hawry, named within as 
disbursing agent. 

A. Lincoln. 
July 19, 1861 

To Orville H. Browning 

Executive Mansion, 
July 20, 1 861. 

Hon. O. H. Browning. 

My dear Sir: To-day I send to the Senate the 
arrangement made through Mr. Williams with the 
Delaware Indians asking their advice as to the 
making a formal treaty of it, as it already is in sub- 

* Endorsement on Secretary Cameron's letter of July 19, 1861. 



I90 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

stance. On very full reflection, I have thought this 
course the safest and best. I will thank you if you 
will move an amendment in about these words: 
Provided that no part of said lands shall be pat- 
ented until the money price for such part shall have 
been fully paid; and provided further that time 
shall be extended so that the rights of said Railroad 
Co. under the treaty to which this is supplemental 
shall not be forfeited until 

The provision for the perfect security of the 
Indians on the one hand; and for the benefit of 
the Company on the other. 

The blank you will fill of course. 
Yours as ever, 

A. Lincoln. 



To Secretary Chase ^ 

Executive Mansion, 
July 26, 1861. 

Mr. Chase: — The bearer, Mr. , wants 

in the custom house at Baltimore. If his 



recommendations are satisfactory, and I recollect 
them to have been so, the fact that he is urged by 
the Methodists should be in his favor, as they com- 
plain of us some. 

A. Lincoln. 

* Printed in Writings, Lapsley ed., v, 345, 



To Rufus F. Andrews 191 

To Thomas A. Scott, Assistant Secretary of War 

Executive Mansion, 
Aug. 3, 1861. 

Hon. As ST. Secretary of War. 

Gen'l Scroggs of New York wishes to raise a 
military corps for service of the government and 
I shall be satisfied with any arrangement you 
may make with him at the department on the 
subject. 

Yours very truly, 

A. Lincoln. 

To Rufus F. Andrews ^ 

Washington, August 6, 1861. 

Hon Rufus F. Andrews 

My dear Sir: Mr. James Morss wishes to be 
Deputy-Surveyor at New York. I do not know 
him personally, except for the last few days; but 
the testimonials he has presented interest me 
enough for him, to induce me to ask for him a fair 
and careful consideration of his case. 
Yours very truly 

A. Lincoln 

* Naval Officer in the New York custom-house. 



192 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

To General Winfield Scott 

Executive Mansion, 
August 7, 1861. 

Lieut. Gen'l. Scott. 

My dear Sir: If it be true, as is intimated to me 

that you think Gen'l Wool should go to Fortress 

Monroe, let him be ordered there at once. 

Yours very truly, 

A. Lincoln. 



To Gu STAVE Koerner 

Washington, D.C, Aug. 8, 1861. 
Hon. G. Koerner. 

My dear Sir: Your dispatch saying application 
of German Brigade is withdrawn, is just received. 
Without occupying our standpoint, you cannot 
conceive how this subject embarrasses us. We have 
promises out, to more than four hundred regiments, 
which if they all come, are more than we want. If 
they all come, we could not take yours, if they do 
not all come we shall want yours, and yet we have 
no possible means of knowing whether they will all 
come or not. I hope you will make due allowance 
for the embarrassment this produces. 
Yours truly, 

A. Lincoln 



To Secretary Cameron 193 

To Secretary Cameron 

Secretary of War, 

Please see and hear Col. Eaton, whom Gen. 
Grant thinks is one of the best contraband agents. 

August ii, 1861. A. LINCOLN 



To Secretary Cameron ^ 

Executive Mansion, 
August 22, 1861. 

Hon. Secretary of War. 

Sir: Victor B. Bell, now of Colorado, is one of 
my most valued friends ; and one of the best, if not 
the very best clerk I ever knew. I would like for 
him to be an Asst. Quarter Master or Commissar}'- 
of Subsistence of Volunteers. 

Can you not fix it for me .? 

Yours truly, 

A. Lincoln. 
August 22, 1861. 

Unaddressed Note 

Is there anything in the Marble line which could 
be given Mr. Rutherford ? 

A. L. 

Aug. 22, 1 861. 



Original owned by Mr. Judd Stewart, New York. 



194 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

Endorsement on Letter 

I think that the young man within recommended, 
ought to be appointed, if possible. There is some 
peculiar reason for it. 

A. Lincoln 

Aug. 22, 1861. 

Endorsement on the Back of an Indignant 
Letter of William W. Richmond 

Will Mr. Richmond distinctly declare that he 
did not write a letter to Mrs. L. giving Senator 
Simmons' name as one of his backers for the Con- 
sulate .? 

A. L. 

August 25, 1861. 

To Secretary Cameron ^ 

Executive Mansion, 
October i^\ 1861. 

Honorable Sec. of War: 

My dear Sir: The Postmaster-General and my- 
self have special reasons for wishing to oblige Mr. 
Benj. F. Watson, of Lawrence, Mass. He has been 
appointed an Assistant Paymaster or Paymaster 
of Volunteers, but he wishes the same post in the 

^ From Abraham Lincoln: Tributes from his Associates, New 
York, 189s, p. 143, which sec for an account of the circumstances 
under which the letter was written. 



To Secretary Smith 195 

regular Army. If there is any vacancy, not com- 
mitted to any other person, let Mr. Watson have 
it. If there be no such vacancy, oblige him, as far 
as you can, by sending him to service at the place 
which suits him best. 

Yours truly, A. Lincoln 

Unaddressed Note 

I did not know that Foster had a consulship ; and 

if he had, I am astonished that he declines it. Let 

the Sec of State take the whole case and do as he 

pleases with it. 

A. Lincoln 
October 12, 1861. 

To Secretary Cameron 

Sec of War. 

Please see Mr. T. H. Clay, son of the late Hon. 
Henry Clay. 

A. Lincoln 

Oct 21, 1861. 

To Secretary Smith 

Executive Mansion, 
Washington, Oct. 23, 1861 

Hon. Sec of Interior 

My dear Sir: If you can think to mention the 
next time I see you, I will tell you more fully what 



196 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

Mr Lewis says of the cases noted by him on the 
inclosed cards. 

Very truly yours, A. Lincoln 

To Rev. F. M. Magrath 

Executive Mansion 
Washington, D.C. October 30, 1861. 

Rev. F. M. Magrath 

Sir: Having been solicited by Christian Minis- 
ters, and other pious people, to appoint suitable 
persons to act as Chaplains at the hospitals for our 
sick and wounded soldiers, and feeling the intrinsic 
propriety of having such persons to so act, and yet 
believing there is no law conferring the power upon 
me to appoint them, I think fit to say that if you 
will voluntarily enter upon, and perform the ap- 
propriate duties of such position, I will recommend 
that Congress make compensation therefor at 
the same rate as Chaplains in the army are com- 
pensated. 

A. Lincoln 

To Secretary Cameron 

Secretary of War, please see Dr. Boyd Pendleton 
of Va. and, if you can, let him be examined at once 
to be a Brigade Surgeon. I very much wish to 
appoint him at once. 

A. Lincoln 

Nov. 7, 1861. 



To L. B. Wyman 197 

To General George B. McClellan 

Gen. McClellan, — 

Please see Hon. Mr. Washburne, M.C. who has 
been on an investigating committee at St. Louis for 
sixteen days recently, and can really give more ac- 
curate and fuller information on material matters 
there, than any one I have seen. 

A. Lincoln 

Nov. 10, 1861. 



To L. B. Wyman 

Executive Mansion, 
Washington, November ii, 1861. 

My Dear Sir: I am directed by the President to 
acknowledge the receipt this morning of your kind 
invitation for the 22nd of December next, and to 
state that nothing but the exigencies of public af- 
fairs could prevent him from availing himself of 
the privilege you have been so thoughtful as to 
tender. 

The President regrets the more deeply the neces- 
sity that deprives him of the pleasure of meeting 
you, since at no former time have the memory and 
the example of our forefathers furnished a more 
instructive subject for our contemplation, than 
now, when the institutions they founded are 
threatened by armed insurrection, and all the 



198 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

powers of the Government are pledged to the 

support of the principles for which they toiled and 

suffered. 

I have the honor to be with great respect, 

Your Obedient Servant 

John Hay 

Assistant Priv. Sec. 
L. B. Wyman Esq 

Chairman &c &c 



To Secretary Cameron 

Sec. of War, please see the bearer who is Marshal 

of the S. District of Illinois. 

A. Lincoln 
Dec. 6, 1861. 



To Secretary Smith 

Executive Mansion, 
Dec. 13, 1861. 

Hon. Sec of Interior. 

My dear Sir: George L. Pomeroy of Illinois, tells 
me he was a clerk in the Census Bureau, and has 
been removed. Will you please ascertain, and tell 
me the circumstances. 

Yours truly, 

A. Lincoln. 



To Henry Liebman 199 

To Rev. Dr. A. Fischel* 

Executive Mansion, 
Dec 14, 1861. 

Rev. Dr. A. Fischel, 

My dear Sir: I find that there are several particu- 
lars in which the present law in regard to Chaplains 
is supposed to be deficient, all of which I now de- 
sign presenting to the appropriate Committee of 
Congress. I shall try to have a new law broad 
enough to cover what is desired by you in behalf of 
the Israelites. 

Yours truly, A. Lincoln. 

To Judge Advocate 

Dec 14, 1861 
Judge Advocate: 

Please see Mr. Schell and Mr Johnson on busi- 
ness of which I spoke this morning. 

Abraham Lincoln. 

To Henry Liebman 

Executive Mansion, 
Washington, D.C. Dec 28, 1861. 

Henry Liebman 

My dear Sir: Your private letter in regard to 

Mr. Burtwell is received. 

1 From Isaac Markens's Abraham Lincoln and the Jews, a 
pamphlet printed for the author, New York, 1909. 



200 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

I have no power to remove a Lieut-Colonel ap- 
pointed by the Governor of New York. The appeal 
must be made, if at all, to the Governor. 
Yours, etc., 

A. Lincoln 



To Secretary Stanton ^ 

Executive Mansion, 
Washington, Jan. 22, 1862. 

To Edwin M. Stanton, 
Secretary of War. 

My dear Sir: Richard M. Corwine was appointed 
Judge Advocate by Gen. Fremont on the 20^^ of 
July last, and served as such till the i8th of Novem- 
ber last. He never had a Commission, but his 
services were as valuable, and his conduct as meri- 
torious, as if his appointment had been entirely 
regular. His is but one of a class of cases, which 
class has been under consideration at the War De- 
partment, but what has been done with it I do not 
know. The meritorious ones ought to have Com- 
missions, nunc pro tunc, and an honorable recog- 
nition of them, and should also be paid. 

I hope this may be done, including Major Cor- 
wine in the arrangement. 

Yours truly, 

A. Lincoln. 

* Original owned by P, F. Madigan, of New York. 



To the King of Siam 201 

Endorsement on Letter of Commander 
John A. Dahlgren 

Washington Jan 28, 1862. 

Capt. Dahlgren gave his views in this letter, at 
my request. I have so much confidence in him in 
naval matters that I enclose it to you as chairman 
of the naval committee. 

A. Lincoln. 

Recipient Unknown ^ 

My dear Sir: Herewith is the resolution we talked 
of yesterday. I think my answer thereon included 
one from the Sec. of War, as well as from you. If 
you send me back a copy of the resolution, I will 
lay it before him. 

Yours truly A. Lincoln. 

To THE King of Siam 

The President of the U.S. to the 
King of Siam. 

Washington, D.C, U.S.A. 
Feb. 3, 1862. 

Great and good friend: I have received your Ma- 
jesty's two letters of the date of Feb. 14, 1861. I 

1 The date and the name of the recipient have been cut from 
the top of the letter. 



202 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

have received in good condition the royal gift which 
accompanied those letters, namely a sword of costly 
materials and exquisite workmanship, a photo- 
graphic likeness of your Majesty and of your Ma- 
jesty's beloved daughter, and also two elephant's 
tusks of length and magnitude, such as indicate that 
they could have belonged only to an animal which 
was a native of Siam. 

Your Majesty's letters show an understanding 
that our laws forbid the President from receiving 
these rich presents as personal treasures. They are 
therefore accepted in accordance with your Ma- 
jesty's desire as tokens of your good will and friend- 
ship for the American people. Congress being now 
in session at this capital, I have had great pleasure 
in making known to them this manifestation of 
your Majesty's munificence and kind consideration. 

Under their direction the gifts will be placed 
among the archives of the government where they 
will remain perpetually as tokens of mutual esteem 
and pacific disposition more honorable to both na- 
tions than any trophies of conquest could be. 

I appreciate most highly your Majesty's tender 
of good oflfices in forwarding to this Government 
a stock from which a supply of elephants might be 
raised on our soil. This Government would not hes- 
itate to avail itself of so generous an offer if the 
object were one which could be made practically 
useful in the present condition of the United States. 



To General George B. McClellan 203 

Our political jurisdiction, however, does not reach a 
latitude so low as to favor the multiplication of the 
elephant, and steam on land as well as on water has 
been our best and most efficient agent of transpor- 
tation in internal commerce. 

I shall have occasion at no distant day to trans- 
mit to your Majesty some token of indication of 
the high sense which this Government entertains 
of your Majesty's friendship. 

Meantime, wishing for your Majesty a long and 

happy life, and, for the generous and emulous 

people of Siam, the highest possible prosperity, I 

commend both to the blessing of Almighty God. 

Your good friend, 

Abraham Lincoln. 

By the President, 

William H. Seward, 
Secretary of State. 



To General George B. McClellan 

Gen. McClellan please see the bearer, who, with 
his Regiment, was forced back from the Bermuda 
Expedition, because of their vessel drawing too 
much water. They are now at Annapolis, and wish 
to follow up the Expedition. Can they be provided 
to do so? Or, what disposition can be made of 
them? 

A Lincoln 

Feb. 14, 1862 



204 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

Endorsement 

This, as is seen, is a most meritorious case; and 
I shall really be obliged, if the Secretary of War 
can and will find a situation ... for the "little 
sergeant." 

A. Lincoln 

Feby 27, 1862. 

To Secretary Seward 

Executive Mansion 

March 5, 1862. 

Hon. Sec. of State, 

My dear Sir: Please summons the Cabinet to 
meet me here at 7 o'clock this evening 
Yours truly, 

A. Lincoln. 

To General Cooper and Others 

These two young men, Richard Middleton and 
Thomas F. Goodwin seem to have a very meritori- 
ous case; and I respectfully commend them to Gen. 
Cooper, and to others to whom this may be pre- 
sented. 

A. Lincoln 

March 8, 1862. 

Mr. Middleton states, he has heretofore been 
employed for several years in the Capitol. I shall 
be pleased if he can be again employed upon it. 



To Colonel Ramsey 205 

To Orville H. Browning 

Will Mr. Senator Browning please see Mr. Mul- 
ler, who I believe to be a correct and honest man. 
Give him a fair show if possible. 

A. Lincoln 

March 14, 1862. 

To Colonel Ramsey 

Col. Ramsey y please find work for the bearer if 
possible. He will tell you what he can do. 

A. Lincoln 

March 27, 1862. 

Endorsement on Letter of Silas Crispin, 
Captain of Ordnance 

What reason is there that the appraisement 
made by Major Hayner and adopted and acted 
upon by Capt. Crispin should not stand, so far as 
it went. 

A. Lincoln 

April 15, 1862. 

Endorsement on Letter of Stephen Baker ^ 

Hon. Mr. Baker, writer of the within, says he 
has had no appointment, little or large, from his 

* Representative from New York in the 37th Congress (1861- 
1863). 



2o6 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

District, except the local ones, and he particularly 
wishes these. I desire that he may be obliged. 
Yours truly, 

A. Lincoln 



Unaddressed Note 

Executive Mansion, 
Washington, May 3, 1862. 

To-day Mr. Senator Wright introduces a Com- 
mittee of Citizens of this District consisting of 
William Dixon, William Wise, Henry Lee, Reuben 
Bacon, Henry D. Gannell, W. J. Murtagh, James 
H. Lusby who asks the appointment of George W. 
Garrett as Warden of Penitentiary. 

A. Lincoln. 



To Valentine B. Horton 

Executive Mansion, 
Washington, May 16, 1862. 

Hon. V. B. Horton, 
M. C. from Ohio, 
My dear Sir: Herewith is a copy of your letter 
with a copy of my Endorsement upon it. 

You perceive I did exactly what you requested. 
Neither more nor less. 

Yours truly, 

A. Lincoln. 



To James F. Simmons 207 

Endorsement on Letter of Valentine B. 

HORTON 

I authorize the Secretary of War to appoint 
Capt. R. F. Hunter, as I am within requested to 
do by Hon. V. B. Horton. 



To James F. Simmons ^ 

Executive Mansion, 
May 21, 1862. 

Hon. Senator Simmons. 

My dear Sir: This distressed girl says she belongs 
to your state ; that she was here with her father and 
brother, in our Army, till they went with it to the 
peninsula ; that her [brother] has been killed there, 
& her father made prisoner. And that she is here, 
wanting employment to support herself. 

If you can be satisfied that her story is correct, 
please see if you can not get Mr Secretary Chase 
or friend Newton to find her a place. 
Yours truly, 

A. Lincoln. 

^ United States Senator from Rhode Island, 1 859-1 863. Orig- 
inal owned by P. F. Madigan, Esq. 



2o8 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 



To Governor Andrew G. Curtin 

Executive Mansion 
May 26. 1862 

His Excellency 

A. G. Curtin 

Gov. of Penn. 
The bearer of this, Edward D. Baker, is the son 
of my very dear friend Col. Baker, who fell at 
Balls Bluff. He thinks you might be induced to 
make him a field officer in a Pennsylvania Regi- 
ment. Disclaiming all wish to interfere in a matter 
so purely belonging to you and your State, I still 
say I would be much pleased, if he could be obliged. 
Yours truly 

A Lincoln 



Recommending Ward H. Lamon 

The bearer of this, W. H. Lamon, is Marshal of 
D.C. — my particular friend, born and raised at 
Bunker Hill, an excellent horseman, and, I think, 
will be most valuable for scouting purposes. 

A. Lincoln 

May 28, 1862. 



t*s 




ijl^l 



d ^C^^^ 




To Solomon Foot 209 

To Solomon Foot ^ 

Executive Mansion, 
Washington, July 15, 1862. 

Hon Solomon Foot 
U.S. Senator 
Sir: I am sorry Senators could not so far trust me 
as to believe I had some real cause for wishing them 
to remain. I am considering a bill which came to 
me only late in the day yesterday, and the subject 
of which has perplexed Congress for more than half 
a year. I may return it with objections; and if I 
should, I wish Congress to have the opportunity of 
obviating the objections, or of passing it into a law 
notwithstanding them. That is all. 
Your obedient servant 

A. Lincoln 

Endorsement on Letter of James Harlan ^ 

Washington July 29, 1862 

1 have some acquaintance with Mr. Taylor ^ 
and think his appointment would be a good 
one. 

A. Lincoln 

» Senator from Vermont, 1857-1866. This is the second letter 
to Senator Foot about adjournment written on the same day. 

2 United States Senator from Iowa, 1855-65 and 1867-73; 
Secretary of the Interior, 1865-66. . 

8 Hawkins Taylor. 



210 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 



To Gen. Henry W. Halleck 

Executive Mansion 
Washington, Aug. 7, 1862. 

Major Gen. Halleck, 

Please see Gen. Casey. He considers himself 
aggrieved, and appeals to me for justice. But I do 
not know what would be justice in the case and 
have not the time to inquire. 

Please hear him. 

A. Lincoln 



To David P. Holloway, Commissioner of Patents 

Executive Mansion, 
Washington, Aug. 20, 1862. 

CoM^ OF Patents, 

Sir: My friend, Capt. Diller, bearer of this, 
wishes the assistance of Dr. Wetherell, chemist in 
your Bureau, to make an experiment, in which 
he, Capt Diller, trusts Dr. Wetherell, the govern- 
ment wishing, as yet, not to be trusted with the 
secret. 

Please let Dr. Wetherell give him the assist- 
ance. 

Yours truly, 

A. Lincoln. 



To Governor William Sprague 211 
Endorsement on Letter of John W. Shaffer ^ 

Executive Mansion 
Sept. 17, 1862 

As I told you yesterday of what disposition is to 
be made of them and whether they can be made 
self-supporting (the negroes) must be decided in 
the Department of the Gulf, and I believe Butler 
is more likely to succeed than any other man I 
know. ... 

The writer of this is a personal acquaintance of 
mine who has been on duty at New Orleans as a 
Quarter Master. I have thought it not improper 
that the Sec. of War should see his suggestions. 

A. Lincoln 



To Governor William Sprague ^ 

Executive Mansion 
Washington, Sep. 20, 1862 

His Excellency 

Gov. William Sprague — 
My dear Sir: I am sure you can not be ignorant of 
my strong desire to oblige you, so far as in my own 
judgement, I consistently can; but I can not now 

1 Appointed from Illinois as Assistant Quarter Master, in the 
Volunteer Army, Aug. 3, 1861, and made a Colonel and Addi- 
tional Aide-de-Camp, Jan. 30, 1862. 

2 Governor of Rhode Island, 1860-1863. 



212 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

so do, that, the procuring of which, seems to be the 
mission of your friend, J. A. Perry. 

Yours truly A Lincoln 

To THE Assistant Surgeon-General ^ 

Assistant Surgeon General please see D- Stipp. 
He says he is ordered to Gen. M-Clellan's camp 
while his preparations — tools, so to speak — are 
at Corinth, Miss. Not intending to interfere by 
an order, I still would be glad if he could be sent 
to Corinth. 

A. Lincoln 

Oct 6, 1862. 

To Secretary Chase 

Executive Mansion, 
Washington, Nov. 8, 1862. 

Hon. Sec. of Treasury 

My dear Sir: I now understand that a Commis- 
sion has been sent to some gentleman as Collector 
for the 13 th District of New York, in place of Mr. 
Masten whom I appointed at the request of Hon. 
Mr. Steele.^ If I have signed a Commission super- 
seding him I have done it inadvertently, not re- 

1 Written on two sides of a card. From a facsimile in an arti- 
cle on " Lincoln as a Boy knew Him," by John Langdon Kaine, 
in the Century, lxiii, 555, Feb., 1913. 

^ John B. Steele, of Kingston, N.Y., Representative in the 
Thirty-Seventh and Thirty-Eighth Congresses. 



To General Carl Schurz 213 

membering having done so at all, and not having 
known any just reason for doing so. 

Having appointed Mr. Masten deliberately, I 
do not wish to revoke such appointment without 
a sufficient reason; and, of course, I do not wish 
to be made to appear as having prevaricated. If 
Mr. Masten has tendered a sufficient bond, I wish 
him to have the office. 

Yours truly, A. Lincoln. 

To Mrs. Lincoln 

Washington, Nov. 9, 1862. 

Mrs. a. Lincoln, 
Boston^ Mass. 
Mrs. Cuthbert and Aunt Mary want to move to 
the White House because it has grown so cold at 
Soldiers' Home. Shall they? 

A. Lincoln 

To General Carl Schurz ^ 

Executive Mansion, 
Washington, Nov. 10, 1862. 

"Private y ConfidentiaV^ 
Gen. Schurz. 

My dear Sir: Yours of the 8th was, to-day, read 
to me by Mrs. S[churz]. We have lost the elections; 

' From Speeches, Correspondence, and Political Papers of Carl 
SchuTZy New York, 1913, i, 211. 



214 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

and it is natural that each of us will believe, and 
say, it has been because his peculiar views was not 
made sufficiently prominent. I think I know what 
it was, but I may be mistaken. Three main causes 
told the whole story, i. The democrats were left 
in a majority by our friends going to the war. 
2. The democrats observed this & determined to 
re-instate themselves in power, and 3. Our news- 
papers, by vilifying and disparaging the adminis- 
tration, furnished them all the weapons to do it 
with. Certainly, the ill-success of the war had 
much to do with this. 

You give a different set of reasons. If you had 
not made the following statements, I should not 
have suspected them to be true. "The defeat of 
the administration is the administration's own 
fault." (Opinion.) "It admitted its professed op- 
ponents to its counsels." (Asserted as a fact.) "It 
placed the Army, now a great power in this Repub- 
lic, into the hands of its enemies." (Asserted as a 
fact.) "In all personal questions to be hostile to 
the party of the Government seemed to be a title 
to consideration." (Asserted as a fact.) "If to 
forget the great rule, that if you are true to your 
friends, your friends will be true to you, and that 
you make your enemies stronger by placing them 
upon an equality with your friends." "Is it sur- 
prising that the opponents of the administration 
should have got into their hands the government of 



To General Carl Schurz 215 

the principal states, after they have had for a long 
time the principal management of the war, the 
great business of the national government." 

I can not dispute about the matter of opinion. 
On the three matters (stated as facts) I shall be 
glad to have your evidence upon them when I shall 
meet you. The plain facts, as they appear to me, 
are these. The administration came into power, 
very largely in a minority of the popular vote. 
Notwithstanding this, it distributed to its party 
friends as nearly all the civil patronage as any ad- 
ministration ever did. The war came. The admin- 
istration could not even start in this, without as- 
sistance outside of its party. It was mere nonsense 
to suppose a minority could put down a majority 
in rebellion. Mr. Schurz (now Gen. Schurz) was 
about here then & I do not recollect that he then 
considered all who were not republicans, were ene- 
mies of the government, and that none of them 
must be appointed to military positions. He will 
correct me if I am mistaken. It so happened that 
very few of our friends had a military education or 
were of the profession of arms. It would have been 
a question whether the war should be conducted on 
military knowledge, or on political affinity, only 
that our own friends (I think Mr. Schurz included) 
seemed to think that such a question was inad- 
missible. Accordingly I have scarcely appointed 
a democrat to a command, who was not urged by 



2i6 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

many republicans and opposed by none. It was so 
as to McClellan. He was first brought forw^ard by 
the Republican Governor of Ohio, & claimed, and 
contended for at the same time by the Republican 
Governor of Pennsylvania. I received recommen- 
dations from the republican delegations in Con- 
gress, and I believe every one of them recom- 
mended a majority of democrats. But, after all 
many Republicans were appointed ; and I mean no 
disparagement to them when I say I do not see 
that their superiority of success has been so marked 
as to throw great suspicion on the good faith of 
those who are not Republicans. 
Yours truly, 

A. Lincoln 



To Hamilton Rowan Gamble, Governor of 
Missouri 

I have not yet been able to get the document but 
have the Secretary of War hunting for it. 

A. Lincoln 
Nov IS, 1862. 



To General Steele and Others 217 

To General Frederick Steele, General 

John Smith Phelps {Military Governor of 

Arkansas) y and Others 

Washington, Nov. i8, 1862. 

General Steele^ Governor Phelps, and all having 
military and naval authority, under the United 
States, within the State of Arkansas: 

Mr. William M. McPherson goes to Arkansas 
seeking to have such of the people thereof as de- 
sire to avoid the unsatisfactory prospect before 
them, and to have peace again upon the old terms 
under the constitution of the United States, to 
manifest such desire by elections of members to the 
Congress of the United States particularly, and 
perhaps a legislature. State officers, and United 
States Senators, friendly to their object. I shall be 
glad for you and each of you to aid them and all 
others acting for this object, as much as possible. 

In all available ways give the people a chance to 
express their wishes at these elections. Follow law 
and forms of law as far as convenient, but at all 
events get the expression of the largest number of 
the people possible. All see how such action will 
connect with and affect the proclamation of Sep- 
tember 22nd. Of course the men elected should be 
gentlemen of character, willing to swear support to 
the Constitution as of old and known to be above 
reasonable suspicion of duplicity. 

Yours very respectfully, A. Lincoln. 



2i8 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

To George S. Boutwell/ Commissioner of 
Internal Revenue 

Executive Mansion, 
Washington, Nov. 24, 1862. 

CoM^ OF Internal Revenue 

Sir: It was by mere oversight that the Eastern 
Shore counties of Virginia, and some other counties 
of Hon. Mr. Segar's ^ District, were not classed as 
loyal in the proclamation of July. I intend to seft 
this right the first convenient opportunity. Mean- 
time, please consult with Mr. Segar, and act with 
his District, in regard to the Revenue, as with a 
loyal District. 

Yours truly A. Lincoln 

To Cyrus Aldrich ^ 

Executive Mansion, 
Washington, Dec 6, 1862. 

Hon Cyrus Aldrich. 

My dear Sir: In answer to your inquiries I can 

only say, at this distance of time, that I remember 

the Land-officers at Vandalia, Palestine, Danville 

and Dixon, in the state of Illinois, who went in 

under the administration of President Taylor, 

^ Formerly Governor of Massachusetts and later Secretary of 
the Treasury under Grant and Senator from Massachusetts. 

* Joseph E. Segar, of Elizabeth City, Va., a Member of Con- 
gress, 1862-1863. 

^ Representative from Minnesota in the Thirty-Sixth and 
Thirty-Seventh Congresses. 



To Secretary Smith 219 

afterwards made a claim in connection with the 
location of Land warrants in the respective offices, 
which claim was disallowed by the accounting offi- 
cers at Washington; that the claim, and conse- 
quently the question in all the cases was the same, 
and that the officers of whom you were one, de- 
termined to test the legality of the claim in a suit 
against one of them which might be brought by the 
government ; and I think the District Attorney also 
agreed to it, so far as to sue one only. — Daniel 
Clapp of Danville and Judge Logan and myself 
were engaged to defend; and while I do not now 
remember the exact question, I do remember that 
I expected the defense would succeed^ and I am sure 
there was nothing in the claim, to cast any imputation 
upon the parties making it. My recollection is that 
the defendants sought, or rather, the single defendant, 
constantly sought to bring the suit to trial, that the 
District Attorney was never ready, and that the case 
lingered many years, and, as I think was still on the 
docket when I came on here. 

Yours very truly, A. Lincoln. 

To Secretary Smith 

Executive Mansion 
Washington, Jan. 8, 1863. 

Hon Caleb B. Smith. 

My dear Sir: I wish you would tell me in writing, 
exactly what you did promise Watt about going to 



220 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

Europe last Spring. If it was in writing send me a 

copy; if merely verbal, write it as accurately as you 

can from memory, and please send it to me at once. 

Yours as ever. 

A. Lincoln. 



To James R. Doolittle 

Executive Mansion, 
Washington, Jan 22, 1863. 

Hon. J. R. Doolittle, 

My dear Sir: I find I cannot postpone the ap- 
pointment of Asst. Sec. of Interior to the end of the 
session. I therefore shall have to try to recognize 
Mr. Potter in some other way. 

Yours very truly, 

A. Lincoln 



To George E. Fawcett 

Executive Mansion, 
Washington January 26, 1863. 

My dear Sir: Allow me to thank you cordially 

for your thoughtful courtesy in sending me a copy 

of your "Emancipation March." 

Your obedient servt, 

A. Lincoln 

Geo. E. Fawcett Esq. 
Muscatine lotva. 



To General Franz Sigel 221 

Endorsement on Letter of General Franz 

Sigel 

I believe an increased Cavalry force would be 
valuable, but I have not promised that, to suit the 
convenience of any officer, I would, however incon- 
venient to the government, raise one immediately. 
I have tried, in regard to Gen. Schurz and Gen. 
Stahl, to oblige all round ; but it seems to get worse 
and worse. If Gen. Sigel would say distinctly and 
unconditionally, what he desires done, about the 
command of the forces he has, I should try to do it; 
but when he has plans, conditioned upon my rais- 
ing new forces, which is inconvenient for me to do, 
it is drawing upon me too severely. 

A. Lincoln. 
Jan. 26, 1863. 

To General Franz Sigel ^ 

Executive Mansion, 
Washington, February 5, 1863. 

Major General Sigel 

My dear Sir: Gen. Schurz thinks I was a little 
cross in my last note to you. If I was, I ask pardon. 
If I do get up a little temper I have no sufficient 
time to keep it up. 

I believe I will not now issue any new order in 
relation to the matter in question; but I will be 

* From a facsimile in the New York Staats-Zeitung. 



222 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

obliged, if Gen. Hooker consistently can, and will 

give an increased Cavalry command to Gen. Stahl. 

You may show Gen. Hooker this letter if you choose. 

Yours truly, 

A. Lincoln. 

To THE Secretaries of War and the Navy ^ 

Executive Mansion, 
Washington, Feb. i6th, 1863. 

Hon. Secretary of War & 

Hon Secretary of the Navy. 
Gentlemen: — Please appoint an officer from each 
of your Departments, for the purpose of testing the 
incendiary shell and incendiary fluid, of A. Berry, 
and reporting to me whether it would be proper to 
introduce the Shell, or the fluid in some other 
form, one or both, into the Military or Naval 
service of the United States. 

Yours truly, A. Lincoln 

To the Commandant at Fort McHenry ^ 

Executive Mansion 
March 13, 1863. 

To the Commandant 

At Fort McHenry : 
General: — You will deliver to the bearer, Mrs. 
Winston, her son, now held a prisoner of War in 

^ Original owned by P. F. Madigan. 

* At Baltimore. The letter is reprinted from Reminiscences of 
Abraham Lincoln by Distinguished Men of his Time, edited by 



To Secretary Stanton 223 

Fort McHenry, and permit her to take him where 
she will, upon his taking the proper parole never 
again to take up arms against the United States. 

Abraham Lincoln. 

To General Totten 

Gen. Totten, please see Judge Mott,^ now Terri- 
torial Delegate for Nevada. 

A. Lincoln 
April 27, 1863. 

To Surgeon-General William A. Hammond 

The Surgeon-General will oblige me if he can 
consistently assign Chaplain Van Santvoord to the 
convalescent camp for a few months. 

,, , A. Lincoln. 

May I, 1863. 

To Secretary Stanton 

Head Quarters A. P. 
May 7, 1863. 

Hon Secretary of War. 

Have you any news? and if any what is it? I 
expect to be up to-night. 

A. Lincoln 

Allen Thorndike Rice, New York, 1888, p. 507, where the whole 
story is told by E. W. Andrews, who was chief of staff to Gen. 
W. W. Morris, the commandant, at the time when the incident 
occurred. 

• Gordon N. Mott. He took his seat as a Delegate in Congress, 
Jan. II, 1864. 



224 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

To Governor Richard Yates 

If the Governor of Illinois, in his discretion, see 
fit to reappoint Lieut. Gray to the place he was 
dismissed from, if it is still vacant, or to appoint 
him to any other Military Office, the disability now 
resting upon him to be so appointed, is hereby 
removed. 

A. Lincoln 

May 25, 1863. 



To Isaac N. Arnold ^ 

Private i^ confidential 

Executive Mansion, 
Washington, May 26, 1863. 

Hon. I. N. Arnold, 

My dear Sir: Your letter advising me to dismiss 
Gen Halleck is received. If the public believe, as 
you say, that he has driven Fremont, Butler, and 
Sigel from the service, they believe what I know 
to be false; so that if I was to yield to it, it would 
only be to be instantly beset by some other demand 
based on another falsehood equally gross. You 
know yourself that Fremont was relieved at his 
own request, before Halleck could have had any- 

* A Republican Congressman from Illinois, 1861-1865, and 
author of History of Abraham Lincoln (1867) arid Life of Abraham 
Lincoln (1885). Original in the Isaac N. Arnold Collection. 



To Isaac N. Arnold 225 

thing to do with it — went out near the end of 
June, while Halleck only came in near the end of 
July. I know equally well that no wish of Halleck's 
had anything to do with the removal of Butler or 
Sigel. Sigel, like Fremont, was relieved at his own 
request, pressed upon me almost constantly for six 
months, and upon complaints that could have been 
made as justly by almost any corps commander in 
the army, and more justly by some. So much for 
the way they got out. Now a word as to their not 
getting back. In the early spring, Gen. Fremont 
sought active service again; and, as it seemed to 
me, sought it in a very good and reasonable spirit. 
But he holds the highest rank in the Army, except 
McClellan, so that I could not well offer him a 
subordinate command. Was I to displace Hooker, 
or Hunter, or Rosecrans, or Grant, or Banks? If 
not, what was I to do? And, similar to this, is the 
case of both the others. One month after Gen 
Butler's return, I offered him a position in which I 
thought and still think he could have done himself 
the highest credit, and the country the greatest 
service, but he declined it. When Gen. Sigel was 
relieved, at his own request as I have said, of course 
I had to put another in command of his corps. Can 
I instantly thrust that other one [out] to put him in 
again ? 

And now my good friend, let me turn your eyes 
upon another point. Whether Gen Grant shall or 



226 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

shall not consummate the capture of Vicksburg, 
his campaign from the beginning of the month up 
to the twenty-second day of it, is one of the most 
brilliant in the world. His corps commanders & 
Division commanders, in part, are McClernand, 
McPherson, Sherman, Steele, Hovey, Blair & 
Logan. And yet taking Gen Grant and these seven 
of his generals, and you can scarcely name one of 
them that has not been constantly denounced even 
opposed by the same men who are now so anx- 
ious to get Halleck out, and Fremont & Butler & 
Sigel in. I believe no one of them went through 
the Senate easily, and certainly one failed to get 
through at all. I am compelled to take a more im- 
partial and unprejudiced view of things. Without 
claiming to be your superior, which I do not, my 
position enables me to understand my duty in all 
these matters better than you possibly can, and I 
hope you do not yet doubt my integrity. 
Your friend as ever, 

A. Lincoln. 

Endorsement on Application of Richard 

MiDDLETON 

I understand that Richard Middleton, named 
within, has an application before Col Long, for 
employment; and while I do not personally know 
him, the within names are so good and ample that 



To Gustave Koerner 227 

I do not hesitate to say I shall be very glad, if he 

can get the employment. 

A. Lincoln 
June 4, 1863. 



To Major-General David Hunter 

Executive Mansion. 
Washington, June 9, 1863. 

My dear Sir: I find it still impossible to answer 
at length your communication received through 
Captain Kinzie. I am unwilling to detain him 
longer, and have directed him to return to Hilton 
Head. 

Very truly yours, 

A. Lincoln 



To Gustave Koerner ^ 

Executive Mansion 
Washington, 12 June 1863 

My Dear Governor: The President directs me to 
acknowledge the receipt of your communication of 
the 24th May, which he received this morning. 
He begs me to assure you that there is no founda- 
tion for the impertinent rumor of your recall, and 
that the matter has been left unnoticed simply 
from the irresponsible character of its origin. He 

» Then Minister to Spain (1862-1865). 



228 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

directs me to renew to you the assurance of his 

undiminished confidence and esteem. 

I have the honor to be 

Very respectfully 

Your obt Sert 

John Hay 
His Excellency 

gustavus koerner 

&c &c 

To Secretary Stanton 

Executive Mansion, 
Washington, D.C. July 29, 1863. 

Hon. Secretary of War. 

Dear Sir: I understand the Gov. of New Hamp- 
shire is anxious in regard to trouble about the 
draft, and desires that the 5th N.H. should be 
sent home on that account. The regiment is now 
here, going down the Potomac, somewhere, and 
contains, as I hear, only 115 men. 

Yours truly, A. Lincoln 

To General George Stoneman ^ 

Executive Mansion, 
Washington, Aug. 1863. 

Gen Stoneman 

I am appealed to in behalf of E. S. Doty, Co. A., 

i^^ Vermont Cavalry, whose friends do not know 

' Major-General of Volunteers. 



To Governor Joseph A. Gilmore 229 

where he is, but fear he has been executed, or is 
under sentence of death, somewhere, as a deserter. 
Records in these cases do not necessarily come, 
and in this case none is here. Please ascertain, and 
inform me, if you can, how the case stands. 
Yours truly, 

A. Lincoln. 



To Governor Joseph A. Gilmore ^ 

Executive Mansion, 
Washington Aug. 7, 1863. 

Joseph A. Gilmore, Gov. N.H. 

My dear Governor Gilmore: I thank you very 
heartily for your kind invitation to visit Concord, 
and especially for the exceedingly cordial terms in 
which you have conveyed it. I very much regret 
that I cannot at present accept it. I am by no 
means certain that I can leave Washington at all 
this summer. The exacting nature of my official 
duties renders it exceedingly improbable. I assure 
you however that I am none the less sincerely 
grateful for your kind intentions and for the ex- 
pressions of personal good will contained in your 
letter. 

I am very truly yours, 

A. Lincoln. 

^ A letter in the handwriting of Secretary John Hay, signed 
by Lincoln. 



230 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

To Secretary Seward 

Hon. Secretary of State: — 

I have for a good while had this particular ques- 
tion under consideration; and my judgement [is] 
that the within, substantially, should be the answer 
to Lord Lyons. 

A. Lincoln 

Aug. 10, 1863. 



To Mrs. Elizabeth J. Grimsley ^ 

Executive Mansion, 
Washington, August 14, 1863. 

My dear Cousin Lizzie: I have, by the law, two 
classes of appointments to make to the naval 
school — ten of each, to the year. The first class, 
according to the law, must be of the families of 
meritorious Naval Officers; while the other class 
does not have such restrictions. You see at once 
that if I have a vacancy in the first class, I cannot 
appoint Johnny to it; and I have intended for 
months and still intend, to appoint him to the very 
first vacancy I can get in the other class. 
Yours very truly, 

A. Lincoln. 

' See telegram, Aug. 24, 1863, in Works, Nicolay and Hay, 
Tandy's ed., 1905, ix, 91. Copy furnished by Mr. Judd Stewart. 



To Secretary Stanton 231 

To Secretary Stanton ^ 

Executive Mansion, 
Washington, Aug. 20, 1863. 

Hon. Secretary of War. 

Dear Sir: Since leaving the telegraph office, it 
has occurred to me that it might be well to have 
Gen. Lockwood send down to us, the two men he 
mentions as just arrived from Fredericksburg. 
Yours truly, 

A. Lincoln 



To Secretary Stanton 

u 

Secretary of War, please see this Pittsburg boy. 
He is very young, and I shall be satisfied with 
whatever you do with him. 

A. Lincoln 

August 21, 1863. 

To Secretary Stanton 

Executive Mansion, 
Washington, Aug. 29, 1863, 

Hon. Secretary of War: — 

Dr. Brown, the embalmer,^ who has so long gone 
with our Armies, says he is now prevented in 

* Original owned by Mr. Judd Stewart. 

* Charles D. Brown, who embalmed President Lincoln's body 
at his death, and at the request of the Secretary of War accom- 
panied the remains to Springfield, Illinois. 



232 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

consequence of the loss of a paper. I suppose he 
should be given another, unless there be some rea- 
son to the contrary unknown to me. 

Yours truly A. Lincoln 

To Attorney-General Bates 

Executive Mansion, 
Washington Sept. 2, 1863. 

Hon. Attorney General. 

Satisfactory evidence having been produced to 
me that William A. Stephens of Shelby county, 
Kentucky, is under an indictment for treason in 
the Circuit Court of the United States for the Dis- 
trict of Kentucky; and that said Stephens, under a 
certain proclamation tendering upon certain terms, 
did, on or about the fifth day of June, 1863, and 
since the finding of said indictment, take the oath 
of allegiance to the United States, and give bond 
with security accordingly, I do hereby pardon him 
for the offense charged in the indictment, and for 
all similar offenses up to the said fifth of June, 1863. 

Please make out a pardon accordingly. 

A. Lincoln. 

To Gen. Nathaniel P. Banks 

Executive Mansion, 
Washington, Sept. 19, 1863. 

My dear Sir: In strong hopes that you have the 
old flag flying in Texas by this time, we are about 



To Robert A. Maxwell 233 

sending you Gen. Hamilton ^ to act as Military 
Governor there. I believe you know him; but it 
can do no harm for me to say I really believe him 
to be a man of worth and ability; and one who, 
by his acquaintance there, can scarcely fail to be 
efficient in re-inaugurating the National. authority. 
He has suffered so long and painful an exile, from 
his home and family, that I feel a deep sympathy 
for him, and I scarcely need say that I am sure he 
has received, and will receive the same from you. 
Yours very truly, 

A. Lincoln. 

To Robert A. Maxwell ^ 

Telegram written but not sent 

"Cypher'* 

Executive Mansion, 
Washington, D.C. Sept, 23, 1863. 

Robert A. Maxwell 

New York 
I hasten to say that in the state of information 
we have here, nothing could be more ungracious 

* Andrew Jackson Hamilton, jurist; born in Alabama, Jan. 28, 
1815; removed to Texas in 1846; elected to Congress in 1851; op- 
posed the secession of Texas; Nov. 14, 1862, appointed Brigadier- 
General and Military Governor of Texas by President Lincoln; 
in 1865 appointed Provisional Governor by President Johnson; 
died in Austin, Texas, Apr. lO, 1875. 

* One of President Lincoln's self-appointed advisers. After 
writing this dispatch and handing it to the operator, the Presi- 



234 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

than to indulge any suspicion towards Gen. 
Thomas. It is doubtful whether his heroism and 
skill exhibited last Sunday afternoon ^ has ever 
been surpassed in the world. 

A. Lincoln 



To Secretary Stanton 

Executive Mansion, 
Washington, Oct. 9, 1863. 

Hon. Secretary of War. 

Sir: Mrs. Thomas G. Clemsin is a daughter of 
the late Hon John C. Calhoun, and is now residing 
near Bladensburg in Maryland. 

She understands that her son, Calhoun Clemsin, 
is now a prisoner of War to us at Johnson's Is- 
land; and she asks the privilege merely of visiting 
him. With your approbation, I consent for her to 
go.2 

Yours truly, 

A. Lincoln 

dent decided not to answer his meddlesome telegram. Printed 
and reproduced in facsimile in David Homer Bates's Lincoln in 
the Telegraph Office. 

* In the Battle of Chickamauga. 

* Secretary Stanton wrote, "Any written communication may 
be forwarded under cover and unsealed through Col. Hoff- 
man.'* 



To General George Stoneman 235 

To THE Officers of the Pacific Railroad 

Executive Mansion 
Washington, Oct. i6, 1863. 

To THE Officers of 

The Pacific Railroad. 

Richard P. Morgan bearer of this, is my personal 

acquaintance and friend, whom I would Hke to 

have obliged in any reasonable way. 

I became acquainted with him while he was 

acting as a Railroad Civil Engineer, and I know 

him long enough and well enough in this capacity 

to believe him to be both competent and faithful. 

Yours, &c 

A. Lincoln 

To Mellen 

Executive Mansion, 
Washington, Oct 22, 1863. 

If Mr. Mellen can conveniently oblige Mr 
Sweeney I shall be glad; but I would not have 
him do it otherwise. 

A. Lincoln 

To General George Stoneman 

Gen. Stoneman, 

Please see and hear patiently my friend, George 
I. Bergen, who will hand you this. 

A. Lincoln. 

October 30, 1863. 



236 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

Unaddressed Note 

I am informed as a certainty, that a lady coming 
from Culpeper C.H. to Warrenton, met Walker's 
Division going south, who said they were going to 
Petersburg. 

A. Lincoln 

To Stephen C. Massett 

Washington, Dec. 4, 1863 

Mr. Stephen C. Massett. 

My Dear Sir: Allow me to thank you very cor- 
dially for your kindness in sending me a copy of 
your book, "Drifting About." 

I am very truly, 

Your Obed't Serv't, Abraham Lincoln. 

To Thurlow Weed 

Executive Mansion, 
Dec 17, 1863. 

Hon. T. Weed. 

Dear Sir: Allow me to introduce my friends, 

Joshua F, Speed ^ and Joshua Tevis of Kentucky. 

You may rely implicitly on whatever they may tell 

you; and I think their mission an important one. 

Yours very truly. 

A. Lincoln. 

* An old and intimate friend of Lincoln's and a leading citizen 
of Louisville. 



To Secretary Welles 237 

To Bayard Taylor 

Executive Mansion, 
Washington Dec 25, 1863. 

Hon Bayard Taylor, 

My dear Sir: I think a good lecture or two on 
Serfs, Serfdom, and Emancipation in Russia would 
be both interesting and valuable. Could not you 
get up such a thing? 

Yours truly 

A. Lincoln 



To Secretary Welles 

[No date] 

Secretary Welles, — 

The United States don't need the services of 
boys who disobey their parents. Let both Snyder 
and RatclifiFe be discharged. 

A. Lincoln. 

Unaddressed Note 

Executive Mansion 
Washington D.C. 

This lady, Miss Weirman wants employment, 
and [II shall be obliged to any Head of a Depart- 
ment or Bureau who can give it to her. 

A. Lincoln 

January 14, 1864. 



238 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 
To Secretary Stanton 

Executive Mansion, 
Washington, Feby 12, 1864. 

To THE Secretary of War. 

Dear Sir: Herewith is the resignation of Mr. 
McElroth, as General Appraiser at New York. 
Send me a nomination for James Freeland as his 
successor unless you know some reason to the 
contrary. 

Yours truly, A. Lincoln 

P.S. The recommendations of Mr. Freeland 
which seem good and ample are herewith. 

A. L. 



To Misses Clara and Julia Brown 

Executive Mansion, 
Washington March 2, 1864. 

Misses Clara & Julia Brown. 

The Afgan you sent is received, and gratefully 
accepted. I especially like my little friends; ^ and 
although you have never seen me, I am glad you 
remember me for the country's sake, and even 
more, that you remember, and try to help the poor 
soldiers. 

Yours very truly A. Lincoln 

' Referring to photographs of the donors which accompanied 
the gift. 



To Attorney-General Bates 239 
To Postmaster-General Blair 

Executive Mansion, 
Washington March 21, 1864. 

To THE Hon Postmaster General. 

Dear Sir: These young ladles, Miss Dugger and 
Miss Beattie, are from Illinois and want employ- 
ment. They are loyal and worthy and I shall be 
glad indeed, if places can be found for them. 
Yours truly, 

A. Lincoln. 



In An Autograph Album for a 
Sanitary Fair 

I never knew a man who wished to be himself a 
slave. 

Consider if you know any good thing, that no 
man desires for himself. 

A. Lincoln 

March 22, 1864. 



To Attorney-General Bates 

Attorney General^ please send me a nomination 
as within requested. 

A. Lincoln 

March 24, 1864. 



240 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

To Colonel Joseph Holt, Judge-Advocate- 
General 

Executive Mansion 
Washington March 28, 1864. 

To Judge Advocate General. 

Dear Sir: I am told that there is a man in the 
Old Capitol Prison by the name of Benedict A. 
King on some charge of Desertion. 
Report me the facts of his case, if you can. 
Yours truly, 

A. Lincoln 



To Colonel Worthington 

Executive Mansion 
Washington March 31, 1864. 

Col. Worthington, — 

If Major General Schenck will say in writing 
upon this sheet that he believes the public serv^ice 
would be advanced by your being placed at the 
head of a Regiment in the field, I will remove any 
legal disability resting upon you so that the Gov- 
ernor of Ohio may appoint you to so command a 
regiment. 

Yours truly 

A. Lincoln 



To General Heniy W. Slocum 241 

To Captain Gustavus V. Fox ^ 

Capt. FoXy please see and hear the bearer, Mr. 
Sawyer. 

A. Lincoln 

May 21, 1864. 

Unaddressed Note ^ 

Allow Charles H. Jonas now a prisoner of war at 
Johnson's Island a parole of three weeks to visit 
his dying father, Abraham Jonas, at Quincy, Ills. 

A. Lincoln 

June 2nd 1864. 

To General Henry W. Slocum 

Executive Mansion, 
Washington June 6. 1864. 

Major General Slocum 

My friend Thomas A. Marshall, who will hand 
you this, informs me that he has some difficulty 
in managing a plantation in your Department. It 
may be that you withhold nothing from him which 
can safely be granted ; and I do not make any order 
in the case; but simply wish to say I personally 
know, so far as such things can be known, that 

^ Assistant Secretary of the Navy. 

' From Isaac Markens's Abraham Lincoln and the Jews, where 
it is quoted from the records of the War Department. See letter 
to Abraham Jonas, p. 130. 



242 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

Mr. Marshall is loyal, truthful, and honorable; and 
that I shall be glad for him to be obliged in any 
not unreasonable way. 

Yours truly A Lincoln 

Endorsement on Letter of Lieutenant 
James B. Jameson ^ 

July 4, 1864 

I believe I need no escort, and unless the Secre- 
tary of War directs, none need attend me. 

A. Lincoln. 

To Joseph Casey ^ 

Executive Mansion, 
Washington, July 6, 1864. 

Hon Joseph Casey. 

My dear Sir: I am urged to appoint an assistant 
attorney to your court in place of Mr. McPherson. 
I believe you once told me, but I am not sure that 
I correctly remember, what is the wish of the court 
in regard to the dismissal or retaining of Mr. Mc- 
Pherson. 

Please tell me again. 

Yours truly, A. Lincoln 

^ The letter informed the President that Lieutenant Jameson 
had been ordered to report to him with twenty men to act as an 
escort. 

^ Chief Justice of the United States Court of Claims. Original 
owned by Mr. Judd Stewart. 



To Governor John A. Andrew 243 
To Mrs. Esther Stockton ^ 

Executive Mansion, 
Washington July 8, 1864. 

Mrs. Esther Stockton. 

Madam: Learning that you who have passed the 
eighty-fourth year of Hfe, have given to the soldiers, 
some three hundred pairs of stockings, knitted by 
yourself, I wish to offer you my thanks. Will you 
also convey my thanks to those young ladies who 
have done so much in feeding our soldiers while 
passing through your city ? 

Yours truly, A. Lincoln 

To Governor John A. Andrew 

If the Governor of Massachusetts understands 
the case and wishes to give Capt Brooks another 
commission the disability is hereby removed en- 
abling him to do so. 

A. Lincoln 

July 18, 1864. 

Pass for Colonel Eaton 

Allow the bearer, Col. Eaton, to pass to and 
from Gen Grant at City Point, Va. 

A. Lincoln 

August 12, 1864 

1 Original owned by granddaughter of Mrs. Stockton, Pitts- 
burgh, Pa. 



244 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 



To General Samuel R. Curtis 

Executive Mansion 
Washington September i, 1864 

Major General Curtis 

The bearer of this, Mr. George K. Otis, General 
Superintendent of the Overland Mail Line, has 
called on me seeking protection for the line against 
the Indians. I can think of nothing better than to 
ask you to have a full conference with him on the 
subject, and to do the very best you can for this 
important interest, consistently with the other 
interests in your charge. 

Yours truly 

A Lincoln 



To Secretary Stanton 

Executive Mansion 
Washington, Sept. 9, 1864. 

Hon. Secretary of War. 

My dear Sir: I am appealed to by the proprietors 
of papers here, because they have to get tele- 
graphed back to them from New York, matter 
which goes from the War Department. 

Might not this be avoided without harm or in- 
convenience to any? 

Yours truly, 

A. Lincoln. 



To Secretary Fessenden 245 



To Secretary Fessenden 

Executive Mansion, 
Washington, Oct. 3, 1864. 

Hon. Secretary of the Treasury: 

My dear Sir, — Mr Hallowell who brings this, 
has a very meritorious Cotton case and I hope it 
may be found that the same sort of thing can be 
done for him that was for Judge Johnson. 
Yours truly 

A. Lincoln 



Pardon and Pass for Roswell McIntyre ^ 

Executive Mansion, 
Washington, Oct. 4, 1864. 

Upon condition that Roswell McIntyre of Co. 
E. 6th Regiment of New York Cavalry returns to 
his Regiment and faithfully serves out his term, 
making up for lost time, or until otherwise lawfully 
discharged, he is fully pardoned for any supposed 
desertion heretofore committed ; and this paper is 
his pass to go to his regiment. 

Abraham Lincoln. 

1 Taken from the body of R. McIntyre at the battle of Five 
Forks, Va., 1865. 



246 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 
To General Horatio G. Wright 

Executive Mansion, 
Washington, Oct 17, 1864. 

S. S. Bradford, whose residence is in Culpeper 
Co., Va., and who is a brother-in-law of Gen. H. G. 
Wright is now on parole not to go south of Phila- 
delphia. If Gen. Wright will request it in writing 
on this sheet, I will allow Mr. Bradford to go home 
to Culpeper.^ 

A. Lincoln. 

Endorsement 

Let this appointment be made if there is a 
vacancy. 

A. Lincoln 

Nov 7, 1864. 

Dispatch to A. G. Henry ^ 

Washington, Nov. 9, 1864 

To A. G. Henry, Surveyor-General, 

Olympia, Washington Territory. 
With returns, and states of which we are confi- 
dent, the re-election of the President is considered 

1 See pass for Mr. Bradford on page 250. 

2 This dispatch was dictated by Mr. Lincoln to Noah Brooks, 
whom he asked to sign it for obvious reasons, but he had it sent 
from the War Department. The text, without the address, was 
printed in Mr. Brooks's Washington in Lincoln's Time, New 
York, 1895. 



To General Hovey 247 

certain, while it is not certain that McCIellan has 
carried any state, though the chances are that he 
has carried New Jersey and Kentucky. 

To Secretary Stanton 

Hon. Sec. of War, 

Please see Mr Gear on this question of furnish- 
ing some small arm ammunition to loyal people in 
Northern Alabama. 

Nov. 16, 1864. A. Lincoln 

Endorsement on Letter of A. Johnson to 

Secretary of War in Favor of 

James H. Woodward 

If another Commissary is needed, let this gen- 
tleman be appointed. 
Nov. 21, 1864. A. Lincoln. 

To General Hovey ^ 

Executive Mansion, 
Washington, Nov. 29, 1864. 

Major General Hovey, or 
whoever may have charge 
at the proper time: 
Whenever John B. Castleman shall be tried, 
if convicted and sentenced, suspend execution 

1 Copied from a facsimile printed in the Louisville Post in 
connection with the centennial ceremonies at Lincoln's birth- 



248 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

until further orders from me and send me the 
record. 

A. Lincoln. 



An Interview with Two Ladies ^ 

On Thursday of last week two ladies from Ten- 
nessee came before the President asking the re- 
lease of their husbands held as prisoners of war at 
Johnson's Island. They were put off until Friday 
when they came again; and were again put off until 
Saturday. At each of the interviews one of the 
ladies urged that her husband was a religious man. 
On Saturday the President ordered the release of 
the prisoners, and then said to the lady, "You say 
your husband is a religious man; tell him when you 

place, Sept. 4, 191 6. The circumstances as given in the Post are 
as follows: Castleman was a Confederate caught within the 
Union lines and was to be tried as a spy. Jlis sister, Virginia 
Castleman, wife of Judge Samuel M. Breckinridge, interceded in 
his behalf. The military court was convened from time to time 
and as often postponed, until finally the War came to an end. 
Castleman was banished from the United States for eighteen 
months, and never knew of this order till fifteen years afterwards, 
when Judge Breckenridge gave it to him. President Lincoln in 
handing the order to Judge Breckenridge said, "Sam, this is for 
you and Virginia, entrusted in confidence, with the condition 
that its existence shall not be known unless the emergency arises 
for which this letter provides." 

^ This was written by President Lincoln in November, 1864, 
for Noah Brooks, the newspaper correspondent. Mr. Lincoln 
entitled the article "The President's last, shortest, and best 
speech." The copy was made from a facsimile of Lincoln's 
handwriting. 



To Secretary Fessenden 249 

meet him, that I say I am not much of a judge of 
rehgion; but that, in my opinion, the rehgion that 
sets men to rebel and fight against their govern- 
ment, because, as they think, that government 
does not sufficiently help some men to eat their 
bread in the sweat of other men's faces, is not the 
sort of religion upon which people can get to 
heaven." 

A. Lincoln. 



Note of Commendation 

Executive Mansion. 
Dec. I, 1864. 

I do not personally know these ladies, but very 
cheerfully endorse Judge Wylie and Mayor Wal- 
lack, and shall be glad if the ladies can find em- 
ployment in any Department or Bureau. 

A. Lincoln. 



To Secretary Fessenden ^ 

Will the Secretary of the Treasury please see and 
hear Mr. Gumpert, so well vouched within ? 

A. Lincoln 
Dec. 15, 1864. 

1 Endorsement on a recommendation of G. Gumpert, applying 
for appointment in the Treasury Department. 



250 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

Pass for S. S. Bradford ^ 

Allow the bearer, S. S. Bradford, to pass by any 
route to his home in Culpeper Co. Virginia and 
there to remain so long as he does not misbehave. 

A. Lincoln 
Dec 21 j 1864. 



To Secretary Fessenden^ 

Executive Mansion, 
Washington, December 29th, 1864. 

My dear Sir: The President of the United States 
will be pleased to receive the Members of the Cabi- 
net and their families on New Years Day (Monday 
January 2, 1865) at twelve o Clock m. precisely. 
Your ob't serv't 

Jno. G. Nicolay 

Priv. Sec. 
Hon Secretary of the Treasury. 



Memorandum on an Application 

File as an application for District Attorney in 
Georgia, when an appointment shall be made. 

A. Lincoln 

Jan 13, 1865 

' See note to Gen. Horatio G. Wright, on page 246. 

"^ Original in the collection of Mr. Charles W. McLellan. 



To the Provost-Marshal-General 251 

To Secretary Stanton 

Executive Mansion. 
• January 22, 1865. 

Hon. Sec of War. 

The Governor^ has a pretty good case. I feel 
sure he is more than half right. We don't want him 
to feel cross and we in the wrong. Try and fix it 
with him. 

A. Lincoln 

To Secretary Seward ^ 

Will the Secretary of State please see and hear 
the bearer Mr. B. A. Ulrich and oblige him if he 
consistently can. He is a young man raised in the 
place of my residence and of a most respectable 
family as he also is himself. 

A. Lincoln. 

January 30, 1865 

To the Provost-Marshal-General' 

Executive Mansion, 
Washington Feb'y- 6th, 1865. 

Provost Marshal General — 

These gentlemen distinctly say to me this morn- 
ing that what they want is the means from your 

1 Governor R. E. Fenton of New York. 

* Endorsement on application for a consulship. 

8 See Works, Nicolay and Hay, Tandy's ed., 1905, xi, 4, for 



252 Letters of Abraham Lincoln 

office of showing their people that the quota as- 
signed to them is right. 

They think it will take but little time — two 
hours, they say. 

Please give them double the time, and every 
facility you can. 

Yours truly. 

A. Lincoln 



To Samuel S. Cox 

Will see Hon. S. S. Cox at 9I a.m. to morrow, if 
he pleases to call. 

A. Lincoln 

March 2, 1865. 



Pass for Judge Dixon 

Whom it may concern : 

Allow the bearer. Judge Dixon, to pass to the 
Officer in Command at Nashville, Tenn., to whom 
the Judge is commended, as worthy of reasonable 
facilities for passing about Kentucky and Ten- 
nessee. 

A. Lincoln. 

March 7, 1865. 

order on same subject. This letter was printed in Writings, 
Lapsley ed., vii, 294. 



To General Godfrey Weitzel 253 

To Mrs. Amanda H. Hall ^ 

Executive Mansion, 
Washington, March 20, 1865. 

Mrs. Amanda H. Hall 

Madam: Induced by a letter of yours to your 
brother, and shown me by him, I send you what 
follows below. 

Respectfully A. Lincoln 

/"Fondly do we hope — fervently do we pray — 
that this mighty scourge of war may speedily pass 
away. Yet, if God wills that it continue until all 
the wealth piled by the bondman's two hundred 
and fifty years of unrequited toil shall be sunk, and 
until every drop of blood drawn with the lash shall 
be paid by another drawn with the sword, as was 
said three thousand years ago, so still it must be 
said, 'The judgments of the Lord are true and 
righteous altogether."* 

Abraham Lincoln 

To General Godfrey Weitzel 

U.S. Military Telegraph. 

By telegraph from City Point 

March 29, 1865 

To Gen Weitzel" 

What if anything, have you observed, on your 
front to-day? 

A. Lincoln 

* Copied from a facsimile. 



Index 



Abbott, Joseph C, letter to, 153. 

Adams, John Quincy, funeral ar- 
rangements, 30, 31. 

Alabama, ammunition for loyal 
people in, 247. 

Aldrich, Cyrus, 218 note; letter to, 
218. 

Alexander, Gen., 50, 

Allard, SI. 

Allen, C. M., 146; letter to, 145. 

Allen, James C, 54 

Allen, Col. Julian, 185. 

Alshuler, 169. 

Ambos, Charles, letter to, 1 10. 

Anderson, Charles E., 186. 

Andrew, John A., note to, 243. 

Andrews, E. W., 223 note. 

Andrews, Rufus F., 191 note; letter 
to, 191. 

Archer, William B., 54. 

Archuletta, Diego, 180. 

Arenz, 42. 

Arkansas, orders for reconstruction 
in 1862, 217. 

Armstrong, Duff, 79 note. 

Armstrong, Hannah, 79 note; let- 
ter to, 79. 

Arnold, Isaac N., 224 note; letter 
to, 224. 

Ashmun, George, 151 and note, 
152. 

Assistant Surgeon-General, note to, 
212. 

Autograph album, 239. 

Bacon, Reuben, 206. 

Bagly, 94. 

Bailey, C, letter to, 81. 

Baker, Edward D., son of Col. 

Baker, 208. 
Baker, Col. Edward Dickinson, 7 

and note, 14, 23, 208. 
Baker, John, 64. 



Baker, Stephen, 205 note; endorse- 
ment on letter of, 205. 
Baker, William C, letter to, 148. 
Baldwin, Abraham, 164, 165. 
Bank law, 73-75. 
Banks, Gen. Nathaniel P., 225; 

letter to, 232. 
Barger, Rev. John S., 55. 
Barret, O. D., 183. 
Barret, T. A., no. 
Barrett, Joseph H., his Abraham 

Lincoln and his Presidency, 1 18 

note; note to, 183. 
Bascom, W. J., 116. 
Bates, David Homer, his Lincoln in 

the Telegraph Office, 234 note. 
Bates, Edward, as a presidential 

candidate, 143, 144; letters and 

notes to, 179, 232, 239. 
Beattie, Miss, 239. 
Beers & Mansfield, letter to, 134. 
Bell, Victor B., 193. 
Benjamin, Park, letter to, 167. 
Benton, Thomas H., 109. 
Berry, A., 222. 
Bile, Earl, 179. 
Bissell, VVilliam H., 67, 92 and 

note, 114. 
Blair, Francis P., 93, 226. 
Blair, Montgomery, considered for 

the Cabinet, 1 73 ; letters and notes 

to, 178, 181, 239. 
Bliss, George, and others,Jetter to, 

159. 
Boal, Dr. Robert, 16 and note. 
Bond, L. Montgomery, letter to, 

165. 
Boutwell, George S., 218 note; let- 
ter to, 218. 
Boys, disobedient, 237. 
Brackett, Joseph W., letters to, 75, 

81. 
Bradford, S. S., 246; pass for, 250. 



256 



Index 



Breckinridge, Samuel M., 248 note. 
Breckinridge, Mrs. Samuel M., 248 

note. 
Breese, Sidney, 32 and note. 
Brewer, A. L., letter to, 62. 
Briggs, Samuel, letter to, 79. 
Brooks, Capt., 243. 
Brooks, Noah, 246 note, 248 note; 

his IVashington in Lincoln's Time, 

246 note. 
Brown, 81. 
Brown, Dr. Charles D., 231 and 

note, 232. 
Brown, Clara and Julia, note to, 

238. 
Browning, M. D., 5. 
Browning, Orville H., 4 note; letters 

to, 22, 53, 85, 189, 205. 
Browning, Mrs. Orville H., 23; 

letter to, 4. 
Bryant, William Cullen, 174. 
Buchanan, James, and Douglas, 

82, 83; Republicans and, 87. 
Buckingham, William A., 152 note; 

letter to, 152. 
Bunn, J., 76. 
Burtwell, Mr., 199. 
Butler, Gen. Benjamin F., 211, 224- 

26. 
Butler, William, 48, 49. 
Butterfield, Mr., 25. 
Button, Isaac S., 12. 

Cameron, Simon, 148, 153; con- 
sidered for Lincoln's Cabinet, 
173, 174; endorsement by, 188; 
draft of a letter to, 177; letters 
and notes to, 183, 185, 187, 193- 
96, 198; endorsement on letter 
of, 189. 

Campbell, auditor, 50. 

Carpenter, Col., 178. 

Carson, John M., letters to, 141. 

Casey, Gen., 210. 

Casey, Mr., 156. 

Casey, Joseph, 242 note; letter to, 
242. 

Castleman, John B., 247, 248 note. 

Central Railroad, 47. 

Central Transcript, letter to the 
editor, 113. 



Chaplains, at hospitals, 196; Jew- 
ish, 199. 

Chase, Salmon P., as a candidate 
before the Chicago Convention, 
138, 139; slated for the Treasury, 
174; letters to, on the contest 
of 1858, 109; on Department 
matters, 179, 182, 185, 190, 212. 

Chester, Anson G., letters to, i6i. 

Chicago Journal, 100. 

Chicago Times, 105. 

Chickamauga, Battle of, 234 note. 

Chipper, steamboat, 40, 41. 

Clapp, Daniel, 219. 

Clay, T. H., 195. 

Clayton, John Jvl., letter to, 39. 

Clemsin, Calhoun, 234. 

Clemsin, Ivlrs. Thomas G., 234. 

Coffin, Judge, 41. 

Conklin, Cyrus, 75. 

Conkling, Mr., 70. 

Connecticut, political struggle in 
March, i860, 137 and note. 

Constable, 67. 

Constitution, the, as a shibboleth, 
120, 121; history of, 124-29. 

Converse & Priest, letter to, 24. 

Conway, Judge M. F., 103. 

Cook, Burton C, 91 and note, 100. 

Cooper, Gen., note to, 204. 

Cooper Institute speech, 149-51. 

Corneau, Stephen A., 57. 

Cornell, Waite & Jameson, letter 
to, 76. 

Corwin, Thomas, 44 note, 172; let- 
ter to, 44. 

Corwine, Richard M., 138 note; his 
commission as Judge-Advocate, 
200; letters to, 138, 146. 

Cox, Samuel S., note to, 252. 

Crispin, Capt. Silas, endorsement 
on letter of, 205. 

Crittenden, John J., 120 note, 123, 
124, 128; letter to, 120. 

Cuba, loi. 

Curtin, Andrew G., note to, 208. 

Curtis, Gen. Samuel R., note to, 
244. 

Dahlgren, John A., note to, 184; 
endorsement on letter of, 201. 



Index 



257 



Danites, 97 and note, 144. 
Davidson, Col. W. H., letter to, 6. 
Davis, David, 145, 146. 
Davis, James M., 67. 
Davis, Levi, letters to, 2. 
Davis, O. L., 50 note; letter to, 50. 
Davis, Thomas, 37. 
Davis, Walter, letter to, 36. 
Dawson, John, 4 and note. 
Delahay, Mark W., 15 and note, 

136, 140; letters to, 99, 103, 116, 

117, 134, 141, 176. 
Delaware Indians, 189, 190. 
Delevan, organization of the town, 

79, 80. 
Dickinson, E. N., 58. 
Diller, Capt., 210. 
District attorney, endorsement on 

application for, 250. 
Dixon, Judge, pass for, 252. 
Dixon, William, 206. 
Dodd, William, 46. 
Dodson, Dr., 157. 
Dole, William P., 180. 
Doney, Thomas, letter to, 157. 
Doolittle, James R., note to, 220. 
Dorman vs. Lane, 9, 13, 14, 17, 20, 

21, 27. 
Doty, E. S., 228. 
Douglas, Stephen A., 133, 136, 143- 

45; and Buchanan, 82, 83; the 

Ne-w York Tribune on, 83, 84; in 

the campaign of 1858, 87, 89, 90, 

96, 109; his position in Dec, i8£8, 

97, 98; proposed publication of 
debate with Lincoln, 105-07. 

Dresser, Mr., letter to, 3. 

Dubois, Jesse K., 73 note, 114, 142, 
145, 146; letter to, 73. 

Dugger, Miss, 239. 

Dummer, Henr\- E., II and note, 
42; Lincoln's opinion of, as a 
lawyer, 62; letters to, IX, 14, 48, 

55, 56,90,91, 131. 
Dungy, William, letter to, 118. 

Eaton, Col., 193; pass for, 243. 

Eddy, Mr., 13, 14, 

Edwards, Ninian W., 186 note; 

letter to, 186. 
Ellsworth, Lieut. E. E., 177, 178. 



Embalmer, 231 and note, 233. 
Emmons, S., letter to, 41. 
Endorsements without name, 194, 

214, 246. 
Ewing, R. M., letter to, 70. 
Ewing, Thomas, letter to, 39. 

Fawcett, George E., note to, 220. 
Fell, J. W., 108, 123 and note. 
Fenn, Ira I., letter to, i. 
Fenton, Gov. Reuben E., 251 and 

note. 
Fessenden, William P., notes to, 

245, 249, 250. 
Field, 14. 

Fillmore, Millard, 153. 
Fischel, Rev. Dr. A., letter to, 199. 
Flagg & Savage, 66. 
Floyd, George P., 66 note; letter to, 

66. 
Fogg, George G., 157 note; letters 

to, 157, 160, 167. 
Foot, Solomon, 209 note: letter to, 

209. 
Forbes & Hill case, 8. 
Forney, John W., 120 and note. 
Fort McHenry, Commandant at, 

order to, 222. 
Foster, 195. 
Fox, Capt. Gustavus V., 241 note; 

note to, 241. 
Francis, Simeon, 44. 
Freeland, James, 238. 
Fremont, Gen. John C, 200, 224- 

26. 
French, Miss, 82. 
French, Fred W., letter to, 169. 
Fugitive slave law, 171. 
Fullininder, I. or J. H., letter to, 

132. 

Gadsden, H. C, & Co., 131. 

Gallaher, John S., 182. 

Gamble, Hamilton Rowan, note 

to, 216. 
Gannell, Henry D., 206. 
Garrett, George W., 206. 
Gatewood vs. Wood & Wood, 13, 14. 
Gear, Mr., 247. 
German Brigade, 192. 
Giddings, Joshua R., letter to, 155. 



2S8 



Index 



Gilmer, John A., 172 and note. 

Gilmore, Joseph A., letter to, 229. 

Goggin, William L., in. 

Goodman, Christian, 63, 64. 

Goodwin, Thomas F., 204. 

Gorden, John, 163. 

Grable vs. Margrave, 7, 8. 

Graham, Menton, 26 note. 

Grant, Gen. Ulysses S., 225, 226. 

Gray, Lieut., 224. 

Gray, Mrs. Franklin C, 82, 83. 

Greeley, Horace, 165. 

Green, Mrs. M. J., letter to, 164. 

Greene, Gilbert J., 45 note. 

Grier, Justice Robert C, 128. 

Grigsby, Aaron, 163 note. 

Grigsby, Charles, 163. 

Grigsby, Nathaniel, 163 note; letter 

to, 163. 
Grimsley, Mrs. Elizabeth J., letter 

to, 230. 
Griswold, of Terre Haute, 145. 
Grubb, George G., 48. 
Gumpert, Mrs., 249 and note. 

Haines and Haines vs. Talcott and 

others, lOi, 102, 105. 
Hains, 54. 
Hall, Squire, 163. 
Hall, Mrs. Amanda H., letter to, 

2S3- 

Hall, O. P., letter to, 132. 

Halleck, Fitz Greene, poems of, 
147. 

Halleck, Gen. Henry W., demand 
for removal of, 224-26; note to, 
210. 

Hallowell, Mr., 245. 

Hamilton, Alexander, 126. 

Hamilton, Gen. Andrew Jackson, 
233 and note. 

Hamlin, Hannibal, 148, 151, 152, 
170, 172. 

Hammond, Surgeon-General Wil- 
liam A., note to, 223. 

Hardin, John J., 4 and note,. 15, 16, 
19. 

Harding, Jacob, letters to, 52, 57. 

Harlan, James, 209 note; endorse- 
ment on letter of, 209. 

Harriet Lane, revenue cutter, 177. 



Harris, Major Thomas L., 36 and 

note, 63, 64. 
Harrison, P. Quinn, letter to, 118. 
Harrison Literary Institute, 141. 
Hawry, Jonathan S., 189. 
Hay, John, letters signed by, 197, 

227; letter in handwriting of, 229. 
Hayner, Major, 205. 
Hays, L. M., letters to, 46, 48. 
Hecker, Mr., 89. 

Henry, Dr. A. G., 2 and note; dis- 
patch to, 246. 
Herndon, William H., 6, 44, 77; 

letter signed by, 69. 
Hickox, 64. 

Hitchcock, Peter, letter to, 40. 
Hoffmann, Francis A., 181. 
Hoffmann, Julius, 181. 
Hogan, letter to, 33. 
Holloway, David P., note to, 210. 
Holt, Col. Joseph, note to, 240. 
Hooker, Gen. Joseph, 222, 225. 
Horton, Valentine B., note, 206; 

endorsement on letter of, 207. 
Houghton, Joel, 180. 
Hovey, Gen. Alvin P., 226; reprieve 

addressed to, 247. 
Hunter, Gen. David, 225; note to, 

227. 
Hunter, Capt. R. F., 207. 

Illinois, constitutional convention, 

22, 23. 
Illinois Journal, 44. 
Indians, 189, 190, 244. 
Irwin, D. M., letter to, 44, 

Jackson, Andrew, 40. 

James, B. F., letters to, 16, 18. 

Jameson, Lieut. James B., 242 
note; endorsement on letter of, 
242. 

Jayne, William, letter signed by, 
69. 

Jefferson, Thomas, and Rev. James 
Lemen, 71; and the Constitu- 
tion, 125, 126; and the Ordi- 
nance of 1784, 1787, 128; forged 
statement about, l6l, 162. 

Jewett, 130. 

Johns, E. G., 24. 



Index 



259 



Johnson, Judge, 245. 

Johnson, Mr., 199. 

Johnson, A., endorsement on letter 

of, 247. 
Johnson, Reverdy, 58 note. 
Johnston, John D., 163. 
Jonas, Abraham, 130 note, 241; 

letter to, 130. 
Jonas, Charles H., 241. 
Jones, 176. 

Jones, Fernando, letter to, 123. 
Judd, Norman B., 93 note, 100, 

108, 122; letter to, 93. 
Judge-Advocate, letter to, 199. 

Kaine, John Langdon, his article 
" Lincoln as a Boy knew Him," 
212 note. 

Kansas, constitution, 82, 83; ad- 
mission to the Union, 134, 135; 
Lincoln in, 135. 

Keeling, Haden, letter to, 103. 

King, Benedict A., 240. 

King, F. T., 63. 

Kinzie, Capt., 227. 

Know Nothing party, 59, 60. 

Knox, James, 54. 

Koerner, Gustave, 65 note, 227 
note; letters to, 65, 77, 80, 89, 92, 
107, 129, 192, 227. 

Ladies, an interview with two, 248. 

Lambert, William H., 66 note. 

Lamon, Ward H., his Recollections 
of Abraham Lincoln, 188 note; 
letters to, 137, 188; note recom- 
mending, 208. 

Land officers, claim of, 218, 219. 

Lander, Col., 182 and note. 

Lands, school, 29, 31-33. 

Lane, Gen. James H., 1 16, 1 17, 134, 
I3S, 187, 188. 

Lanman, Charles, letter to, 154. 

Lecompton Constitution, the, 82, 
83. 

Lecture on Inventions, 104, 141. 

Lee, Henry, 206. 

Lemen, Rev. James, Jr., letter to, 

71- 
Lemen, Rev. James, Sr., 71-73. 
Letters and notes without address, 



193. 195, 201, 206, 236, 237, 241, 
24.9. See also Endorsements. 

Lewis, 196. 

Lewis, George W., letter to, 155. 

Lewis, Thomas, 63. 

Liebman, Henry, letter to, 199. 

Lincoln, Abraham, postmaster, i; 
marriage, 9; running for Con- 
gress, 9, 10, 14-16, 18-20; start- 
ing for Washington, 24; in Con- 
gress, 26-39; attends Philadel- 
phia convention of 1848, 31; can- 
didate for Commissionership of 
the General Land Office, 39; 
candidate for the United States 
Senate, 52, 53; on reading law, 
61, 62; in the 1856 political cam- 
paign, 66-71; in the Senatorial 
campaign of 1858, 87-96, 109; 
urged to run for the Presidency, 
104 and note, 123 note; on the use 
of money in political contests, 
135; on the candidates before 
the Chicago Convention of i860, 
138-40, 142-44; his chances in 
the Convention, 146; his nomi- 
nation for the Presidency, 147; 
in the campaign of 1S60, 147-67; 
his Cooper Institute speech, 149- 
51; election as President, 167; 
intentions in regard to interfer- 
ence with the States, 168, 169; 
no compromise on the extension 
of slavery, 171; for an honest in- 
forcement of the fugitive slave 
law, 171; his first inaugural, 
175, 176; his first administration, 
176-252; on his appointments, 
214-16; on reconstruction in Ar- 
kansas, 217; reelection, 246; in- 
terviews with two ladies from 
Tennessee, 248 and note; his sec- 
ond administration, 252, 253. 

Lincoln, Abraham, localities of 
residence or visit: 
Army of the Potomac Headquar- 
ters, 223. 
Ashville, 111., 93. 
Beardstown, 111., 48, 90, 91. 
Blandonville, 111., 95. 
Bloomington, III, 46, 47, 60, 108. 



26o 



Index 



Carlinville, 111., 51, 65. 

Charleston, 111., 69. 

Chicago, 58, 61, 82, 89, 90, loi, 
106, 137, 140, 141, 169. 

Cincinnati, 40, 60. 

Clinton, 111., 52. 

Columbus, O., 41. 

Connecticut, 137. 

Council Bluffs, 99. 

Danville, 111., 57. 

Galesburg, III., 68. 

Grandview, 111., 69. 

Jacksonville, 111., 51. 

Kansas, 135. 

Lincoln, 111., 105. 

Monticello, 111., 91. 

Mount Pulaski, 111., 46. 

Naples, 111., 51, 94. 

New England, 141. 

New Salem, 111., i, 62. 

New York, 149. 

Paris, 111., 69. 

Quincy, 111., 51. 

Rockford, 111., 58. 

St. Louis, 37. 

Shelbyville, 111., 69. 

Springfield, 111., 1-3, 5-25, 39, 
41-45, 48-51, 53-56, 58-81, 
83-92, 95-100, 103, 104, 106- 
30, 132-36, 138-75. 

Vermillion, 111., 7. 

Washington, D.C., 24, 26-39, 
176-253. 
Lincoln, Abraham, Reminiscences 

of, by Distinguished Men of his 

Time, 222 note. 
Lincoln, Abraham: Tributes from his 

Associates, 194 note. 
Lincoln, Mrs. Abraham, note to, 

.213. 
Lincoln, Thomas, 158. 
Littlefield, John H., 170 note; letter 

to, 170. 
Lockwood, Gen. Henry H., 23 1. 
Logan, Gen. John A., 226. 
Logan, Lewis, 40, 41. 
Logan, Stephen T., 8 and note, 13, 

20, 22, 25, 27, 35, 36, 45, 80, 219; 

candidate for the Illinois Su- 
preme Court, 56, 57. 
Long, Col., 226. ' 



Louisville Journal, 175 note. 
Louisville Post, 247 note. 
Lovejoy, Elijah P., 71-73. 
Lovejoy, Owen, 91; letter to, 59. 
Luna, Ramon, 180. 
Lundy, Dr. B. Clarke, 68 note; 

letters to, 68, 78, 96. 
Lusby, James H., 206. 

McAtee, 64. 

McCallen, Andrew, 27 note; letters 

to, 27, 45, 84. 
McClellan, Gen. George B., 216, 

247; notes to, 197, 203. 
McClernand, John Alexander, 29, 

184, 226. 
McClure, Alexander K., 162 note; 

letter to, 162. 
McCormick, Cyrus H., 58 and note. 
McEIroth, Mr., 238. 
Mclntyre, Roswell, pardon and 

pass for, 245. 
McLean, John, 67; as a candidate 

before the Chicago Convention, 

139 and note, 140, 143. 
McNamar, letter to, 17. 
McNamar, James, 18 note. 
McNamar, John, 17 note, 18 note. 
McNeill, John, 17 note. 
McPherson, Mr., 242. 
McPherson, Gen. James B., 226. 
McPherson, William M,, 217. 
Macomb Eagle, 161. 
Macready, Mrs., 85. 
Magrath, Rev. F. M., letter to, 196. 
Manny, John H., 58 and note. 
Manny & Co., 58; letter to, 61. 
Markens, Isaac, his Abraham Lin- 
coln and tlie Jews, 199 note, 241 

note. 
Marshall, John, Territorial Judge 

of Illinois, 7 note, 13, 14, 49 note; 

letter to, 49. 
Marshall, Samuel D., 7 and note; 

letters to, 7, 8, 12, 14, 17, 20, 27. 
Marshall, Thomas A., 241. 
Massett, Stephen C, note to, 236. 
Masten, Mr., 212, 213. 
Maurlnares, Jose Antonio, 180. 
Maxwell, Robert A., 233 note; un- 

sent telegram to, 233. - 



Index 



261 



Mellen, note to, 235. 

Menard Index, 70. 

Mershow, Dr., 46. 

Middleton, Richard, 204; endorse- 
ment on application of, 226. 

Miles, G. A., 63 note; letters to, 63, 
65. 

Miller, S3, 54. 

Missouri Democrat, 93. 

Moore, 54. 

Moore vs. Brown et al, 22. 

Moore vs. Latourette, 22. 

Morey, 152. 

Morgan, Richard P., 235. 

Morgan Journal, 18, 19. 

Morris, Gen. W. W., 223 note. 

Morris & Brown, letters to, 24, 25. 

Morrison, 67. 

Morss, James, 191. 

Moseley, Robert, letters to, 88. 

Moses, John, letter to, 95. 

Mott, Gordon N., 223 and note. 

Muller, Mr., 205. 

MuUer, James N., 185 and note. 

Munsey's Magazine, 183 note. 

Murtagh, W. J., 206. 

Musten, Thomas, 176. 

New Hampshire, draft in, 228. 
New York Herald, 157-59. 
Nezv York Staais-Zeitung, 221 note. 
Nezv York Tribune, 70, 165. 
Nicolay, Helen, her Personal Traits 

of Abraham Lincoln, 178 note. 
Nicolay, John G., invitation signed 

by, 250. 
Norton, Jesse O., 54. 
Notes without address. See Letters. 
Nott, Charles C, 149 and note; 

letters to, 149, 164. 

Ohio & Mississippi Railroad Com- 
pany, 77. 
Oldys, Henry, in note. 
Olney, Mr., 84, 85. 
Otis, George K., 244. 
Overland Mail Line, 244. 

Pacific Railroad, letter to officers 

of, 235. 
Page and Bacon, 77. 



Paine, Gen. Eleazar A., 95 and note; 
letter to, 95. 

Palmer, John M., 68 note, 100, 119; 
letter to, 68. 

Pawnee, U.S.S., 177. 

Pekin, convention, 19. 

Pendleton, Dr. Boyd, 196. 

Perry, J. A., 212. 

Phelps, Gen. John Smith, letter to, 
217. 

Pickerel, Jesse A., letter to, 119. 

Pickett, Thomas J., 104 note; letter 
to, 104. 

Pocahontas, U.S.S., 177. 

Pomeroy, George L., 198. 

Potter, Mr., 220. 

Powers, D. J., letter to, 115. 

Prairie Beacon, 89. 

Pratt, Mrs. C. W., letter to, 175. 

Prentice, George D., 175 note; let- 
ter to, 175. 

Press-Tribune, 105, 107. 

Provost-Marshal-General, note to, 
251. 

Putnam, 148, 156. 

Quincy Whig, 60. 

Ramsey, Col., note to, 20$. 

Ratcliffe, 237. 

Read, Judge, 153 and note. 

Reavis, Isham, letter to, 61. 

Reeder, Andrew H., 153. 

Register, 93. 

Rice, Allen Thorndike, his Remi- 
niscences of Abraham Lincoln by 
Distinguished Men of his Time, 
222 note. 

Richardson, O. H. Perry, 180. 

Richmond, William W., 194. 

Ripley, Gen. James W., note to, 186. 

Rosecrans, Gen. William S., 225. 

Ross, William A., letter to, 105. 

Rousseau, Gen. Lovell H., 186. 

Russell, John L., 180. 

Rutherford, Mr., 193. 

Rutledge, Anne, 17 note. 

Sandford, Sylvanus, 57. 
Sanford, Porter & Striker, 55 and 
note. 



262 



Index 



Sargent, Nathan, ill and note; 
letter to, iii. 

Sawyer, Mr., 241. 

Schell, Mr., 199. 

Schenck, Gen. Robert C, 240. 

Schouler, William, 34 and note; 
letters to, 34, 35. 

Schurz, Gen. Carl, 221; letter to, 
213. 

Schurz, Mrs. Carl, 213. 

Scott, John S., 178, 179. 

Scott, Thomas A., note to, 191. 

Scott, Gen. Winfield, 124, 182; 
note to, 192. 

Scripps, John L., 86 and note, 95; 
letter to, 86. 

Scroggs, Gen., 191. 

Sears, H., 3. 

Secretary of State, letter to, 39. 
See also Seward. 

Secretary of the Interior, letter to, 
39. See also Smith and Usher. 

Segar, Joseph E., 218 and note. 

Servaut, Col., 7. 

Seward, William H., 148, 172; as 
a candidate for the Republican 
nomination to the Presidency, 
138, 139, 142-44; Lincoln's in- 
tention to offer him a cabinet 
position, 170, 174; endorsement 
on letter of, 182; notes to, 204, 
230, 251. 

Sexton, Mr., 85. 

Shaffer, John W., 211 note; endorse- 
ment on letter of, 211. 

Sherman, Gen. William T., 226. 

Siam, King of, letter to, 201. 

Sigel, Gen. Franz, 224-26; endorse- 
ment on letter of, 221; letter to, 
221. 

Simmons, James F., 194, 207 note; 
letter to, 207. 

Singleton, 67. 

Slavery, "ultimate extinction" of, 
86, 87; the Republican Party and 
the extension of, 92; views of 
Alexander H. Stephens on, 124, 
128; Lincoln's views on, 128; 
"this government cannot endure 
permanently half slave and half 
free," 132, 133. 



Slicer, Rev. Henry, letter to, 30. 
Slocum, Gen. Henry W.. letter to, 

241. 
Small, Col., 183. 
Smith, Caleb Blood, 35 and note; 

letters and notes to, 180, 195, 198, 

219. 
Snyder, 237. 

South Carolina, the forts in, 173. 
Speed, Joshua F., 236 and note. 
Spinner, Francis E., 156 and note; 

letter to, 156. 
Sprague, Dr., 90. 
Sprague, William, 21 1 note; letter 

to, 211. 
Stahl, Gen., 221, 222. 
Stanton, Edwin M., beginning of 

Lincoln's acquaintance with, 58 

note; letters and notes to, 200, 

222, 223, 228, 231, 234, 238, 244, 

247, 251. 
Stapp, Dr., 3. 
States' Rights, 124-29. 
Steele, Gen. Frederick, 226; letter 

to, 217. 
Steele, John B., 212 and note. 
Stephens, Alexander H., letter to, 

123. 
Stephens, William A., 232. 
Stewart, Judd, Some Lincoln Cor- 
respondence from the Collection 

of, 120 note, 123 note. 
Stickney vs. Cassell, 12, 13. 
Stipp, Dr., 212. 

Stockton,Mrs.Esther, letter to, 243. 
Stoneman, Gen. George, 228 note; 

notes to, 228, 235. 
Stuart, John T., 6 and note, 6j; 

letter to, 6. 
Summers, Mr., 3. 
Sweeney, Mr., 235. 
Swett, Leonard, 55 and note; letters 

to, 5S, 148, 156, 175- 

Taliaferro, Jefferson, 5. 

Taylor, Bayard, letter to, 237. 

Taylor, Hawkins, 209 and note. 

Taylor, T. P., 46. 

Taylor, Zachary, and appointments, 

39. 40- 
Tenlcy, G. W., 46. 



Index 



263 



Tevis, Joshua, 236. 

Thomas, Gen. George H., 234. 

Thomas, Gen. Lorenzo, note to, 184. 

Thomas, Richard S., 9 and note, 42; 
letters to, 9, 10, 11, 26, 28, 29, 31, 
33,42, 51. 

Thornton, Anthony, 67. 

Thornton et al., 25. 

Tilton, J. E., letter to, 154. 

Toombs, Robert, 124. 

Totten, Gen., note to, 223. 

Treasury Department, endorse- 
ment on letter to, 189. 

Trumbull, Lyman, 54, 108, 135, 
142; letters to, on the 1856 cam- 
paign, 66, 69; on the Kansas 
Constitution, Buchanan, and 
Douglas, 82, 83; on Douglas and 
the New York Tribune, 83; on the 
senatorial campaign of 1858, 87; 
on Douglas's position in Dec, 
1858, 96; on the political outlook 
in Jan., 1859, 98; on their per- 
sonal relations, lOO; on Forney's 
candidacy, 119; on distribution 
of documents, 122; on Delahay's 
senatorial aspirations, 136; urging 
him to speak in Connecticut, 137; 
on the political outlook in April 
and May, i860, 140, 142, 144, 
147; on the speech of acceptance, 
151; on the campaign of i860, 
153; on offering a cabinet place 
to Seward, 170; on the extension 
of slavery, 171 (2); on a mission 
of Thurlow Weed's, 172; on the 
South Carolina forts, 173; on 
formation of the Cabinet, 173; 
statement written by Lincoln for 
speech by, 168. 

Tuck, Mr., 155. 

Turnham, David, 166 note; letter 
to, 166. 

Ulrich, B. A., 251. 
Underbill, Mr., 5. 
Underwood, Mr., 96, 97. 
Underwood, John C, 182 note. 
Union, the, to be kept, 121, 125-29; 

and slaver}'', 132, 133. 
Usher, John P., 145 and note. 



Van Santvoord, Chaplain, 223. 
Vigal, William W., 63. 
Virginia, Eastern Shore counties of, 
218. 

Wade, Benjamin F., 148, 171. 
Walborn, Cornelius, 181. 
Walker, C, 5. 
Walker's Division, 236. 
Wallace, Mr., letter to, 45. 
Wallack, Mayor, 249. 
Warner, Jacob, 75. 
Washburne, Elihu B., 54, 197. 
Watson, Benjamin F., 194, 195. 
Watson, P. H., 58 note, 61; letters 

to, 58, loi, 105. 
Watt, 219. 
Webb, 7. 
Webb, Bat, 6. 
Webb, O. B., 4. 
Webber, T. R., letter to, 47. 
Webster and Hickox, 64. 
Weed, Thurlow, 148; on a mission 

from Lincoln, 172; note to, 236. 
Weirman, Miss, 237. 
Weitzel, Gen. Godfrey, note to, 

253- 
Welles, C. R., letter to, 37. 
Welles, Gideon, letters to, ordering 

an expedition, 177; on department 

matters, 180, 181, 186, 222, 237. 
Wentworth, Col. John, 100 note. 
Wetherell, Dr., 210. 
White, Horace, his Life of Lyman 

Trumbull, 116 note, 173 note. 
Whitney, Henry C, 18 note, 91 

note; his Life of Lincoln, 109 

note; his Life on the Circuit with 

Lincoln, 169 note; letters to, 91, 

169. 
Wiley, Mr., 84. 
Williams, Mr., 51, 53, 60, 189. 
Wilson, Mr., letter to, 45. 
Wilson, James Grant, letter to, 

147. 
Winston, Mrs., 222. 
Wise, William, 206. 
Wood, John, 163. 
Woodward, James H., endorsement 

in favor of, 247. 
Woodworth, James H., 54. 



264 



Index 



Wool, Gen. John E., 192. 
Worthington, Col., note to, 240. 
Wright, Gen. Horatio G., note to, 

246. 
Wright, Joseph A., 206. 
Wylie, Judge, 249. 
Wyman, L. B., letter to, 197. 

Yates, Richard, 51 and note, S3> 



8i(.^); letter to, 51; letter signed 

by, 69; note to, 224. 
Yates, William, 175. 
Yeatman, Mr., 38. 
Young, Richard M., 34 and note.' 
Young & Brothers case, 37. 
Young-Indian Club, 124. 

Zinn, Peter, letter to, 116. 



31<.77-1 



